Story of a Lonely Guy
by professor-fidget
Summary: Sirius Black is in love with the only girl to turn him down ... R&R! disclaimer characters property of JKR!
1. The Hogwarts Express

The Hogwarts Express  
  
It was the first day at their sixth year at Hogwarts and Sirius Black was ecstatic. He walked onto platform 9 ¾ with the air of a king, exuding confidence with every step. Two of his best friends, Prongs (James Potter), and Moony (Remus Lupin) walked with him. Together, the three of them were the coolest kids in school, especially James and Sirius. They were the height of cool and as they boarded the train, various students from the different Hogwarts Houses greeted them. They casually made their way to the back of the train, to the compartment which they now considered theirs as they sat in it through every voyage, to await the arrival of Wormtail (Peter Pettigrew). Collectively, the four boys made the Marauders.  
  
When they were about halfway down the train, Remus, who had been anxiously looking into every compartment – looking for a glimpse of their friend, Adriana Finn whom he had a crush on – looked at his watch. "Christ, I've got to go to the Prefect's compartment! Catch you later guys." Moony suddenly about faced and headed back up the aisle.  
  
James shrugged and continued what he had been saying. "I have so much planned for pranks this year ... we'll go down in Hogwarts History. After all, we only have two more years to leave an incredible impression."  
  
Sirius snickered. "I doubt we can leave much more of an impression, but I'm certainly willing to try." James chuckled.  
  
Finally, they reached the compartment they had been looking for, and as they slid the door open they noticed two girls currently occupying their space. One of the girls was none other than Adriana Finn, who was currently sporting light blond curls and baby blue eyes – she was a Metamorphmagus – and the other girl was one Sirius had never seen before. She sat with her face turned away from him and was deeply in conversation with Finn. She had thick, dark brown hair that went on an inch past her shoulders and flipped out at the ends. In several strategic spots there were streaks of gold, red, and orange, giving the impression of mesmerizing flames that danced whenever she moved her head. She had long legs and an incredibly nice shape and he judged that she would stand just over 5'6".  
  
Sirius arched an eyebrow, thinking to himself that she must be a transfer student, as he made his way into the room.  
  
Adriana spotted him and James then and a broad smile covered her face. "James! Sirius! So good to see you two!"  
  
"Great to see you too, Finn," James greeted as he took a seat. Sirius merely nodded.  
  
"Who's your friend?" He asked, intrigued.  
  
A funny look crossed Adriana's face as she struggled not to laugh. James chuckled and Sirius instantly had a bad feeling.  
  
"Better close your mouth before you start drooling, Black" a familiar sing-song voice stated coolly as the mystery girl turned around. She had dark midnight eyes and high, well defined cheekbones; her lips were a naturally dark red. Sirius's mouth dropped in shock. But it couldn't be ...?  
  
"Circe!" Sirius was dumbstruck, this beautiful siren could not possibly be the pudgy girl who he had hung around for the last two years as she sat starring dreamily at him and his fellow Marauders (except Peter who was not at all attractive) with a look of open admiration. Circe Bloom, along with Adriana and Lily Evans were all friends with the Marauders, though Lily despised James and he was completely in love with her. They were all in the same year and in the same house, Gryffindor, at Hogwarts. The group had been friends for years. She was also one of the chasers on the Gryffindor Quidditch team alongside himself and James - he was a beater and Prongs was the seeker – but he had never considered her and him close.  
  
She smirked up at him and he knew that it was indeed her because it was an expression he knew so well. But she no longer looked the same. Gone was the baby fat that had once covered her face, and she seemed to have lost all the excess weight that had prevented him from noticing how pretty she was before in there years as friends.  
  
"But you're not fat anymore!" Too late. Sirius realized he had actually said the words aloud when he saw the cold glare that leapt to life in her eyes. Sirius could have shot himself and he stammered, trying to think of something to say to fix the situation. James suddenly exploded with laughter, never having seen Sirius get flustered around a girl before. "I mean ... what I meant to say was that ... I didn't mean to say that you were- "  
  
James saved the day gallantly, "What Padfoot is trying to say is that you look beautiful Ms. Bloom."  
  
Circe nodded, dragging her gaze away from Sirius and fixing it on James. She smiled at him.  
  
"Where's your other half?" James questioned playfully, referring to Lily.  
  
"Doing her best to avoid you," Adriana teased and James frowned but recovered.  
  
"Well then, what brings you two lovely ladies to our compartment?" James asked as he put his feet up on his trunk. Sirius took the seat next to James, which also just happened to be the seat across from Circe.  
  
"No where else to sit," Adriana said, looking distractedly at the door.  
  
Circe started to speak before Adriana had even finished her sentence. "Ri wanted to come here to see Remus. But it looks like he isn't here."  
  
Adriana scowled at Circe as James spoke, "Finn, you looking for Moony then?" He raised his eyebrows in suggestion.  
  
"I just wanted to ask him something," she mumbled in reply.  
  
Circe snickered and Sirius was mesmerized. He had never before noticed how cute she looked when she scrunched her nose up just like that. How had he never noticed how incredibly beautiful she was, or had this just happened?  
  
His thoughts were interrupted when Wormtail entered the compartment. Peter was a stout boy who had the appearance of a weasel. He was completely unimpressive, something that many of the students found odd as he was best friends with the three most impressive guys in the school.  
  
"Hey there, how's it going Wormtail!" James said excitedly as Peter took a seat next to Sirius.  
  
Circe snickered and Adriana scowled at his entrance. Neither girl liked him as he was "an annoying tag along" (in Adriana's words). It was the same reason that neither girl like Kelsey Smithettes, a fellow sixth year Gryffindor girl. Adriana was smart and pretty, Circe was smart and a phenomenal chaser ... and had become pretty (or had she always been?) and they felt that this put them one step above Peter and Kelsey who were not extraordinary in any way. They did, however accept Remus, James, Sirius, and Lily as they felt that each of the former were all of their social quality.  
  
Needless to say, the two girls were haughty snobs, but rightly so.  
  
"Great!" Replied Peter. "Had a good summer ... good ... and you?"  
  
"Fun," James said as he took out some cards. "Anyone interested in a game of exploding snap?" Everyone except for Adriana agreed to play.  
  
After the game had been going on for close to five minutes Adriana spoke again. "So ... where is Lupin anyway?" She tried to give off the impression that she didn't actually care and was just asking out of curiosity but she failed miserably.  
  
Both Sirius and James looked up quizzically. This was interesting as Adriana had never shown this much interest in Remus, and it was a nice thing too because he had loved her for as long as they could remember. "He's with the Prefects," answered Peter who had not noticed anything.  
  
"Oh." Said Adriana, then, "Is he coming here when he's done then?" Circe hid a smile as she looked over at her friend. Sirius stared at her again, unable to help himself.  
  
Before either James or Sirius could reply Peter piped in again. "Don't think so, at least not right away."  
  
"Really?" This was news to Sirius as he had thought that Moony was to join them shortly.  
  
"That's right." Peter finally looked up, proud to know something for once that his friends didn't. "I ran into him in the hallway, he was headed to sit with Kira and her friends."  
  
Both Circe and Adriana suddenly stared with odd expressions on their faces. "Kira who?!" Adriana was incredulous.  
  
Sirius could have smacked Peter, and came close to doing it. The stupid git was shooting his mouth off without any thoughts as to what he was doing. Remus was in love with Adriana, and if she was showing interest in him, they should encourage it!  
  
But before he could comment, Peter opened his big mouth again. "Kira Thompson. She's in Ravenclaw, a prefect I think."  
  
"Why's he with her?" Ri flushed, but didn't seem to care about how her jealousy must appear, she was too curious.  
  
"They're dating." Peter smirked, once again proud that he knew something others didn't. Adriana looked furious and Sirius rolled his eyes. This was so uncouth, and he was, not for the first time, ashamed to call Peter friend.  
  
Everyone's eyes were on Adriana, who stood up at once. "Good for him then!" She was absolutely furious and she grabbed her stuff, trying to leave the room when James grabbed her.  
  
"Quit it will yah," Sirius had the suspicion that if it had been anyone other than James who stopped her she would have punched them. "Just sit back down and relax, we'll play another game of exploding snap."  
  
Adriana looked at Circe, who looked adorably flustered in Sirius's opinion, and then sat back down, starring sulkily out the window.  
  
"Good. Now ... back to the game." James said jovially. Sirius still did not speak, but eyed Circe from under his hair, unable to take his eyes away.  
  
~*~A/N~*~ This story goes along with my other Harry Potter fanfic ... Broken. Only, this one is told from Sirius's point of view and is more about him while the other is about Remus. Hope you enjoy it!! 


	2. The Welcoming Feast

At the beginning of every year Hogwarts held a grand welcoming feast that included the famous sorting ceremony. The sorting was conducted by an old had which placed the new first years into one of the four school houses, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin. This was one of the best events at the school, and Circe was excited.  
  
Just as she had been five years ago when she had been a first year. She had been so nervous there; unsure as to which house she was to be placed in. Both her and her older sister, Nikola were from a Muggle family and were amazed that both were witches. They're family originated from Greece, but had moved to Sussex when Circe was five. Nikola had resided in Hufflepuff, and she had hoped to be sent to that house with her, but when the hat had called out Gryffindor, she had not been too disappointed. In her opinion, the great time that she'd had throughout her time at Hogwarts could not have been had in any other house.  
  
Gryffindor was where she had met the best friends she had ever had. Lily Evans and Adriana Finn. It was also where she had met Remus, James, and Sirius. Three of the coolest guys in the school, and three guys that she considered to be friends. Gryffindor was also the house that she had helped win the Quidditch cup three years running as she was one of the top chasers in the school. She loved it here, and was more than happy to be back.  
  
But as she entered the Great Hall after having the door held open for her by Sirius Black, she had to admit that part of the reason she was so excited to be back was because she had gained so much confidence over the summer. Sick of being the fat one of the Bloom household, she had worked hard to lose the excess weight she had accumulated over the years and she was proud of herself. In her opinion, she had never looked more beautiful.  
  
It seemed, too, that Sirius agreed with her. Never before had he showed her this much attention. It almost made her uncomfortable. She had always considered him a friend, and of course he was gorgeous with his to-die-for body, slightly longish dark black hair that always fell in exactly the right place, and fathomless dark blue eyes. But she also knew him. He had a new girl every three weeks and was a practiced ladies man; every girl in Hogwarts swooned for him, except for herself, Lily, and Ri. So, what was he doing tagging along after her?  
  
Circe knew the answer already. He chased after every pretty girl, and now that she was 'pretty' he was going to use his famous charms on her so that he could add yet another notch to his bed-post – a topic of gossip among all the ladies at the school – and brag about yet another conquest.  
  
Not bloody likely, she thought to herself as she took a seat across from Lily and next to, ugh, Kelsey Smithettes. Kelsey was a nice enough girl, one of her roommates, but she was an annoying tagalong in Circe's opinion and Circe had no time for tagalongs. It was the same reason that she loathed Peter Pettigrew, the Marauders fourth member.  
  
"Comfortable?" Sirius whispered in her ear, causing her to jump as he took the seat next to her.  
  
"I was," she returned coldly. Now, normally she was very nice to Sirius, but she had not yet forgiven him for calling her fat earlier on the train. Granted, she had been fat but it had been rude of him to say it.  
  
Of course, it had been utterly hilarious to watch him fall over himself to try and fix the situation. This was a memory that she would cherish.  
  
"Anything I can do to help?" He teased, lifting one brow. Circe laughed good naturedly, said "No," and then turned away from him as the first years entered the room, all looking absolutely terrified.  
  
She watched as they all lined up and listened as Dumbledore announced that the sorting was about to begin. It was then that Lily spoke up, "Circe? Where's Ri?" Circe looked around the table, noticing for the first time that Adriana had not shown up. How odd.  
  
And then she noticed that Remus Lupin was also gone. The same realization seemed to have occurred to Lily too as the two girls exchanged a look. Adriana had just recently become very preoccupied with Lupin, something that in Circe's opinion should have happened a long time ago as it had not escaped her notice that he was head over heels for Ri. This knowledge was something that upset Circe, at least it had up until six months ago.  
  
She had always had the deepest admiration for Remus, but she gave up when she knew that she never had a chance. Actually, she owed him a lot, in a way. It was his rejection of her last spring that had been the trigger for her preoccupation with making herself look gorgeous.  
  
Circe was jerked from her thoughts by the feel of a hand sliding along her lower back. Without looking she knew that it was Sirius and she frowned as she turned to look at him. "What is it?"  
  
"You were smiling about something, and I'm dying to know what." Sirius said in a serious voice that was betrayed by the twinkle in his eyes. Lord he was handsome.  
  
"Curiosity killed the cat you know," she returned. Oddly enough, even though she had known him for years, she was uncomfortable with his attention. Never before had she had Sirius turn his charms on her and it was ... a decidedly different experience.  
  
"Not the dog though," she was confused by his statement, but figured it probably had something to do with his nickname, Padfoot, so she didn't care.  
  
Before she could respond she noticed that Remus and Adriana had entered the room, taking the two seats across from her and Sirius. Circe raised an eyebrow at the huge grin that covered Remus's face and the half- annoyed, half-embarrassed expression that covered Ri's. She laughed to herself.  
  
Sirius took his free hand and touched it to his heart, feigning a look of despair. "First the smile, now the laughter! I swear, not knowing the reason shall kill me."  
  
"Well, it's not you," she shut him down.  
  
He jumped theatrically as if shot. "Be still my wounded heart!" But before he finished his outlandish speech he was interrupted by a very annoyed James who had decided to raise his voice.  
  
"Oi! Moony? Have you been listening to a word I just said?"  
  
Sirius turned his attention away from Circe and she smiled to herself and joined in the conversation with Lily and Adriana.  
  
The three girls were talking about summer vacation when they over heard James say obnoxiously, "Does he perhaps have a lady love?" Adriana blushed and Lily muttered under her breath, "Stupid git, that Potter."  
  
Circe opened her mouth to say something when she overheard Remus say something about the Gryffindor Quidditch team so she turned her attention to the Marauders. Remus shrugged at something James had said, and then smirked, "I don't like to talk while I eat." Her curiosity not appeased, Circe turned back to her conversation, noticing that the food had appeared.  
  
She enjoyed the feast with only a few more interruptions from the over zealous Sirius, feeling flattered at the attention. Then the two groups, the Marauders as well as Circe, Adriana, Lily, and Kelsey (Lily insisted that they be nice to her) headed back up to Gryffindor tower for their first night back at school.  
  
All in all, Circe had to admit that her first night back had been better than she had ever anticipated. Not only was one of the most popular boys in the school flirting with her, but she had noticed several guys watching her as she walked by. She smiled to herself before getting into bed. This year was going to be interesting. 


	3. Seamus Malloy

Over the next couple of weeks all the students fell into new routines with their new classroom, the same thing they did every year. The new sixth years, with the results from the previous years OWLs in hand, started their new classes with future careers in mind.  
  
Now Circe was still undecided about what she wanted to do after graduation so she only took the classes that interested her the most. This included Defense Against the Dark Arts, Charms, Transfiguration, Mugglestudies – which was really just an opportunity to catch up on missed sleep as she was Muggle born – History of Magic, and Herbology.  
  
Of course, she did have one career in mind as she made her way to her down to breakfast that morning. Circe wanted to be a chaser for one of the National Quidditch Teams, preferably 'The Greek Gods'. Now, this was not an unrealistic goal as she was an extremely talented chaser, but everyone kept telling her that she had to pick a "more serious career". Circe sighed as she knew her critics were right. If she didn't make a Quidditch team then she would definitely need a career.  
  
But as she took her seat at the house table, a sudden thought entered her head and she smiled. She could always marry rich.  
  
"Thinking about me," Sirius whispered flirtatiously in her ear as he took the seat next to her, something that had become a regular routine since starting back at school.  
  
"No." She returned.  
  
"Then why the sudden smile? Come on, admit it. You were thinking about me." He put one hand on her shoulder and the other on the table, giving her his full attention as none of their friends were down in the Great Hall yet. He smiled suggestively at her and she grinned back.  
  
"My, my, Mr. Black. You certainly are full of yourself." She raised a brow and brushed her bangs from her face.  
  
"Pardon me?" He pretended outrage. "Could you please repeat yourself, I'm not quite sure if I heard you correctly. Is it possible that you are calling me conceited?"  
  
"If you were any more arrogant your head would drag on the ground." This comment made Sirius roar with laughter and when James, Peter and Remus took their seats they looked from Circe to Sirius quizzically.  
  
"What'd we miss?" Remus asked with a smile.  
  
"Bloom called me arrogant!" Sirius said, taking a deep breath and trying not to laugh again.  
  
"Too right." James said and Sirius burst out laughing again.  
  
"You certainly have a point," Remus said.  
  
Just then Adriana and Lily came and took their seats and breakfast began. After eating, Circe left from the Great Hall and headed for her classes.  
  
Later that day, after her Mugglestudies class which she took with the Hufflepuffs she was stopped in the hallway by Seamus Malloy, a seventh year Hufflepuff and Quidditch captain. He had light brown hair, and was several inches taller than her. He had nice eyes too. She noticed that he looked nervous, and she wondered what he wanted as he had only talked to her a few times, and always about the Hogwarts Quidditch cup and their respective teams.  
  
"Circe, hi." He said, staring at his feet which he shuffled around nervously.  
  
"Hi!" She smiled, curious about what he wanted.  
  
"Can I walk you to your next class?" Seamus asked, finally looking up at her. She smiled and nodded. And as he walked her to her Charms class, Circe couldn't help noticing how much he kept starring at her and she smiled to herself.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Sirius sat with his head resting on his hands in his Charms class, listening to Professor Flitwick give the instructions for today's lesson. Or, at least, half listening. It was near impossible for him to give the teacher his undivided attention as Circe was sitting in the seat in front of him. He watched her avidly as she quietly joked with Adriana.  
  
Over the weeks since he had got back to school he had found himself watching her a lot. And thinking about her, and flirting with her. At first he had thought that maybe she had cast a spell on him but he quickly discounted that idea as she didn't seem to give much thought to his attentions. And that bothered him.  
  
Never before had a girl that Sirius had set his sights upon shot him down as many times as Circe did. Sure, she flirted with him when she was in the mood, but whenever he even suggested that they do something she backed off.  
  
This had to be the most frustrating experience of his life, and he didn't know how to deal with it. All he knew was that he wanted her. Bad.  
  
"Geez Padfoot, you got it bad." James chuckled as he leaned forward, resting his arms on the desk.  
  
"Shut up, Prongs." Sirius dragged his eyes away from Circe and looked at his best friend. James was smirking.  
  
James shrugged in response. "Now you know how I feel about Lily."  
  
"No way!" Sirius quipped. "I'm not nearly that bad."  
  
James playfully smacked Sirius and the two started laughing. Both Adriana and Circe turned around to see what was going on.  
  
Sirius smiled slightly at Circe and she smiled back. He opened his mouth to say something to her, to say anything really but was interrupted by Professor Flitwick "Pay attention please!"  
  
Both Circe and Adriana turned back around and Sirius and James stopped talking. Sirius spent the rest of the lesson starring at the back of Circe's head.  
  
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The next week at school, when Sirius got to the Great Hall for lunch he was dealt a blow that ruined the rest of his otherwise happy day. It had happened as he sat in his seat, watching the door for the arrival of Circe, as had become a new custom of his.  
  
Circe had walked into the room, hand-in-hand with Seamus Malloy, a seventh year Hufflepuff, and captain of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team.  
  
He stared in complete disbelief as the two kissed before parting, not believing his eyes. Since when was she dating Seamus?  
  
As she made her way to the table he averted his eyes from her, turning to pretend to listen to the conversation that Peter and Remus were having.  
  
Circe took the seat next to him so that she sat in between him and Lily. "Hi," she said.  
  
He didn't look at her, but said "Hi," back coolly. Remus, Peter, and Lily all turned to look at him with shock as this was the first time in weeks that he had not greeted her by flirting outrageously. She too looked shocked and slightly confused.  
  
"Are you mad at me?" She whispered cautiously after he had ignored her completely for the entire breakfast. He turned and looked at her, and said, "Yes" as casually as he could. He then stood up and left the table, leaving her looking totally flabbergasted.  
  
His bad mood lasted through the rest of the day, and that night when he was getting ready for bed, James called him on it.  
  
"Christ, you're acting like a prat! What's with you today?" James sat down on his bed, looking annoyed.  
  
"Nothing," Sirius replied as he took of his shirt and started getting into bed.  
  
"Wouldn't have anything to do with Seamus Malloy, would it Padfoot?" Remus asked astutely. Sirius scowled.  
  
"Malloy? Isn't he Captain of Hufflepuff's Quidditch team? What's he got to do with anything?" James was intrigued.  
  
Of course Remus would know, thought Sirius. Circe would have told Adriana and Adriana would have told Moony. But he had thought that Moony and Finn were on the outs? He mentally shrugged. His scowl deepened and he flopped onto his bed.  
  
"Circe and Seamus are dating," stated Remus, who had also gotten into his bed.  
  
"That's what's bothering you?" James smirked. "I thought it was something serious!" He had the gall to laugh.  
  
"Shut up Prongs." Sirius threatened.  
  
"Oh come on! Lighten up mate. She deserves to have some fun." She could have fun with me, Sirius thought. "Besides, she's too nice of a girl for you anyway."  
  
Of course she was too nice for him. And she was also one of his friends which was usually a big no for him as he never wanted to jeopardize friendships. James was right, she did deserve some fun. It didn't make any sense that he would be angry and jealous about this, he should be happy for her.  
  
But knowing the logic didn't make him any less annoyed. There was no help for it, he thought. He was going to have to do something to make her notice.  
  
Sirius frowned slightly to himself, but what could he do to make her notice?  
  
~*~A/N~*~ Hope you like this chapter. And I swear ... it's going to get better soon ... I'm just trying to get the plot going! 


	4. Herbology and a Midnight Broom Ride

The next day, Sirius and his fellow Gryffindors had double Herbology in the afternoon along with the Ravenclaws. Now, this was a good class in Sirius's opinion. It was fairly easy, and both James and Remus were with him in the class, along with Lily and Circe. He was still mad at Circe, and she in turn didn't talk to him anymore, figuring that he would get over his childishness and grow up. Not bloody likely, he thought to himself.  
  
Now, this class was different than the others. First off Adriana had dropped her Ancient Runes class and transferred in here with them, and secondly, Circe had arrived late for class. This created an opportunity for Sirius. Remus partnered with his girlfriend Kira, Lily partnered with Adriana, James with Kelsey Smithettes (another ploy to try and make Lily Jealous), and that left Circe and Sirius. Sirius had purposely said no to everybody who had asked him. He smiled to himself and walked over to her.  
  
"Tsk, tsk ... late for class Ms Bloom?" He smiled his most charming smile at her and she stared at him stunned for a moment, confused as to why his anger with her had just disappeared.  
  
"I had to talk to Seamus." Circe replied. Her words felt like a blow which surprised Sirius. He didn't want to analyze that ...  
  
"Well ... the thing about being late for class is that everybody usually partners up pretty fast." He tried to appear innocent as he spoke. "And since the class now has even numbers thanks to Ms Finn that leaves just you and me. Unless of course you want to partner with them," He gestured to a group of Ravenclaws who were 'below Circe's social status'. She starred at him suspiciously and he continued to smile at her with all the charm he could muster."  
  
"Yah right," she forced a laugh.  
  
"Come on ... be my partner?" He said stepping closer to her.  
  
"Lily and I are always partners," her eyes darted to the station where Lily and Adriana sat and she frowned.  
  
"Be my partner, please?" He asked, raising his eyebrow and emphasizing the last word.  
  
She let out an exaggerated sigh of exasperation, but he could see a hint of a smile as she gave in. "Alright. Fine."  
  
"Great!" Sirius grinned and grabbed her hand which she instantly and unsuccessfully tried to tug away. He then dragged her to the station that rested between Adriana and Lily's, and James and Kelsey.  
  
"Circe! You're here," Lily said, looking from Adriana to Circe with a slightly guilty expression on her face.  
  
"Sorry for stealing Evans," Adriana said as she looked from Circe to Sirius to their joined hands with a smirk. Circe tugged her hand away.  
  
"Don't worry about it." Circe said.  
  
Sirius heard James say something to Kelsey, and it wasn't hard to hear at all because he was deliberately speaking loudly. "You're looking very pretty today."  
  
Sirius burst out laughing as Lily rolled her eyes. Everybody in the class eyed him for a second and then went back to their work.  
  
The assignment today was to re-pot Griffith-root plants. Both Sirius and Circe had an easy time finishing, and they talked with the casual ease of old friends.  
  
"Looking forward to Quidditch season?" Sirius asked her as he watched her from underneath the curtain of his bangs.  
  
"Of course! I got a new broomstick this summer and I can't wait to try it out on the pitch." She leaned back in her chair smiling.  
  
"Then don't wait," an idea formed itself in Sirius's head and the wheels in his brain turned like a well oiled machine.  
  
"Huh?" She looked at him strangely.  
  
"Well, the first Quidditch practice isn't for another week and a half, why bother waiting that long?" Sirius used all the charm he possessed as he spoke to her. She looked at his face, flitting around each of his features.  
  
"What are you talking about, Black?" She leaned forward in her chair and dropped her voice so that it was just above a whisper. Circe knew him well enough to guess that what he was about to suggest was something they weren't supposed to do.  
  
"Meet me in the common room tonight at 11:30. Bring your broom." Sirius said with an impish smile. Circe smiled back. "Alright Black, I'll be there, but you better not get me in trouble."  
  
"I'd never dream of such a thing." Sirius grinned widely and leaned back in his chair. Tonight was going to be ... interesting.  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
That night after dinner James and Sirius went upstairs to the dorm room, both exchanging theories as to why Remus had not been at dinner. All of their theories came down to one explanation: Adriana Finn.  
  
When they entered the dorm room the first thing they saw was Remus looking pitifully miserable. Neither James nor Sirius said anything until they had gotten settled in the room. James seated on his bed, and Sirius standing close to the window.  
  
James started the Spanish inquisition off, "Why weren't you at dinner?"  
  
Remus shrugged and Sirius decided to test the waters. "Yeah, Finn was asking about you."  
  
"Right, Well-"  
  
"It's about her isn't it?" James asked a curious expression on his face.  
  
"That's why you're locked up here alone in your room." Sirius stopped pacing and turned to stare at Remus.  
  
"This is certainly looking interesting, isn't it Padfoot?" James smirked as he turned to look at Sirius.  
  
"Yes, yes it is Prongs. Looks like our friend Moony here is having some girl troubles" Sirius took a seat next to James and looked at Remus with a mischievous expression.  
  
Remus took to long in answering so Sirius prompted him "Well ... is it about Finn?"  
  
"Or Kira?" James piped in.  
  
A thought struck Sirius, "Or Finn and Kira?" he said, while raising his eyebrows.  
  
Remus ran a hand through his hair, "All bets on the last one."  
  
"Ooh ... now this is going to be interesting." James smirked and Remus looked even more miserable.  
  
"What happened?" Sirius asked, trying to hide a smile for the benefit of Moony.  
  
"Well ... Adriana has been ignoring me lately so I figured it was about time the two of us talked," both Sirius and James nodded, what Remus said was true. "And one thing sort of led to another-"  
  
"Moony, you dog you," James mocked slyly.  
  
"- and Kira caught the two of us kissing and slapped me." Remus finished, without missing a beat, used to James's interruptions.  
  
"Ouch." Sirius pitied his friend. "What are you gonna do?"  
  
Remus shrugged. "I have no idea. It goes without saying that Kira is furious with me, and I have no idea what's going on with Adriana. Or even if anything is going on with her."  
  
Sirius decided to get rid of his friends insecurities. "Take it from me Moony. Finn's been going crazy for you ever since we got back here. Now, I only know a bit of what happened last year-" Remus opened his mouth to say something but Sirius held up his hand and kept talking, "but whatever it was it sure had an effect on her. She wants you bad."  
  
James added, "And you better take advantage of this, my friend. Cause if you don't you're gonna end up kicking yourself. After all, we all know how much you've liked her over the years."  
  
"We wish you luck." Sirius finished.  
  
With that, Remus went to bed, looking slightly relieved, and Sirius retrieved James's invisibility cloak –he had asked to borrow it earlier – and sat on his bed, waiting for 11:30 to roll around.  
  
When the time came for Sirius to meet Circe, he got out of bed and went down to the common room. She was there, sitting on the couch looking adorably curious. She held her broom in one hand and was starring at him as he entered.  
  
"Black," She said, nodding at him as he went over and stood in front of her.  
  
"Bloom," He returned, nodding in the exact same way she had which got a laugh from her. He stuck out his hand, "Shall we?"  
  
She looked a bit apprehensive for a moment but took his hand and stood up. "So how are we going to get out to the Quidditch pitch?" When he didn't say anything she continued "I figured that's where we're going. It is ... isn't it?"  
  
Sirius laughed and pulled out James's invisibility cloak.  
  
Circe looked at it with interest on her face. "I'm impressed. You gonna tell me where you got that?" He shook his head, still smiling. "I didn't think so."  
  
Still holding her hand, Sirius made his way to the door of the common room and then started to fit the cloak around them and her broom. "You're going to have to stand closer to me," he said and she shuffled closer so that their entire sides touched. He let go of her hand and slid his arm around her shoulders, keeping them completely covered by the cloak. His heart beat a bit faster and Sirius cursed himself for being nervous. He was never nervous when it came to girls.  
  
Together they made their way out of the common room and silently down the school until, after close to twenty five minutes of walking, they reached the Quidditch Pitch. Once in the safety of the darkness outside, Filch never patrolled the outside grounds, they removed the cloak and Circe stepped out from under Sirius's arm. He missed having his arm around her ...  
  
"So ... what now?" She turned and smiled radiantly at him.  
  
For a second Sirius was completely besotted by her and didn't say anything. Then he blushed, something he never did, and he was glad it was dark out and she couldn't see. "Well ... now we fly." He said simply, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.  
  
"We?" Circe teased. "But you didn't bring a broom."  
  
Sirius pretended to be chagrined and smacked himself on the forehead. "How could I have forgotten a broom? I guess we'll have to share."  
  
Circe laughed as she got on her broom, "Yeah, I'm sure you 'forgot'". He smiled at her and then mounted the broom so that he sat right behind her. He slid his hands around her waist and rested his chin on her shoulder. Whispering into her ear, "let's go then."  
  
She kicked off the ground and together they took a lap around the pitch. She was a good flier, something he knew from playing on the same team as her for three years and she made some sharp turns and loops to practice. Sirius tightened his hands around her waist. This was nice, he thought to himself. He really wanted to kiss her, but knew he should at least wait until they got to the ground, otherwise the surprise might cause them to fall.  
  
They flew in silence for a half-an-hour when Circe finally lowered the broom to the ground. When they got off it, he hadn't removed his hands from around her waist and she turned in his grip to look at him curiously. Sirius leaned forward and kissed her lightly.  
  
After the initial shock from his kiss, Circe melted into his arms and he slid his tongue into her mouth. She looped her arms around his neck and played a bit with the hair at his nape. Sirius groaned. Breaking the kiss, he whispered into her ear as he nibbled it "I want you so much." He kissed the side of her neck, feeling himself get hot with need.  
  
Circe sighed and then pulled away, dropping her hands from his neck. She stared into his eyes, searching for something. Sirius opened his mouth to speak, to ask her why she had pulled away when she put a finger to his lips. "Come on Black ..." She started speaking, and she seemed sad. "You want everything in a skirt."  
  
Sirius was so confused at the suddenness of her change in attitude. "You're not wearing a skirt," he teased, trying to lighten the mood.  
  
She laughed, but it sounded forced. "Come on, let's go back." She started to walk back and Sirius stood there, stunned.  
  
This was a huge blow to his ego. Circe had just walked away from him, Sirius Black. When she realized that he wasn't following her, she stopped and turned to look at him. "Are you pouting?" She asked, and began to laugh. He didn't see what was so funny. First she shot him down, now she was laughing at him?  
  
Sirius bristled. "I do not pout."  
  
Then, "Black ..." she began. "We're friends, right?"  
  
He was confused. "Yeah, we're friends."  
  
"Then let's keep it that way." A light bulb went off in his head and he realized what was going on. He smiled to himself. It wasn't that she didn't like him; she just didn't want to ruin their friendship. He felt relieved and tried to explain.  
  
"No matter what we do, it isn't going to change the fact that we're friends." He was convinced now, that after his assurance, if he had tried to kiss her she would have let him. He took a step forward but she stopped him by putting out a hand.  
  
"What if I don't want to do anything?" She shuffled her feet nervously and stared at him, her eyes impossible to read.  
  
"What?" He was incredulous. Sirius's cockiness made it impossible for him to believe this. He couldn't fathom why she didn't want to make-out with him. All girls wanted to make-out with him. For Christsakes, he even had a freaking fan club!  
  
And now she looked annoyed. "I have a boyfriend you know." There was an edge to her voice and he knew she was mad at him.  
  
"Malloy, right?" He asked, feeling his insides twist painfully but since he wasn't used to the feeling he tried to ignore it. "What's your point?"  
  
Circe stared at him in disbelief and he knew he had said something wrong. Probably said everything wrong. Christ, he thought, why did she have to be so damn confusing? Why was it her, of all people, to get him so flustered that he screwed everything up?  
  
"You are the most arrogant, insufferable jerk that I have ever met!" She exploded. Sirius's eyes narrowed, but she kept talking before he could try and say his side of the story. "You've got this crazy idea in your head that every girl in this damn school wants you and if you even look their way they'll lift up their skirts. Well, it doesn't work like that, Black. Not every girl wants to screw you!"  
  
"You're living proof of that," he muttered bitterly, and she heard him.  
  
"UGH!" She turned around and started to walk away, making it to the door before she realized that it was after midnight and if she got caught wandering the halls she would land herself in detention. Circe turned and looked at him, fuming. "Are you going to go back inside, or stay out here all night?" she said coolly.  
  
Sirius snorted and walked over to her. He was pissed off at her, and what made him even angrier was that he knew she was right. He was a conceited bastard, but she didn't have to be so rude about pointing it out. He jerked the invisibility cloak around them and opened the door. "After you, your highness." He whispered mockingly.  
  
This time the silence as they made their way back to Gryffindor tower was not comfortable. Both Circe and Sirius were seething, and they walked awkwardly, careful not to touch one another. When they finally arrived in the common room, Circe turned and looked at him before going upstairs to her dorm.  
  
"You know, sometimes you're a real prince." She said sarcastically and then turned her back on him and left.  
  
Sirius sat down on a big, comfortable chair right in front of the fire, starring into the flames as he cooled off. After an hour, when he finally went to his bed he realized something. This fight he had just had with Circe had not stopped him from wanting her.  
  
If anything, knowing that she was the one girl who didn't want him, made him want her even more. 


	5. James's Expert Advice

That next morning, very uncharacteristically, Sirius and James were the first awake. James, after realizing that Sirius was in an extremely bad mood, had asked him what had happened the night before with Circe.  
  
"Nothing," Sirius grumbled.  
  
"Right ... I believe that." James had replied sarcastically. "Come on."  
  
"Well, I kissed her." Sirius said as he got up, looking for his comb.  
  
"Congrats."  
  
"Hardly. She was mad at me about it!" Sirius exploded. "I just don't get her, there are dozens of other girls who are dying for a chance to have me look at them and she has the nerve to get mad at me!"  
  
James burst out laughing. "The nerve to get mad at you? Come off it Padfoot. Not every girl is madly in love with you."  
  
Sirius glared at his best friend. "Of course I know that! But still ..."  
  
"You know, rejection really doesn't suit you." Sirius scowled which caused James to laugh some more. "Besides, Bloom's a friend. You shouldn't be chasing after her anyway."  
  
"Evans is a friend, you shouldn't go chasing after her." Sirius mimicked, referring to Lily.  
  
James held up his hand and looked at Sirius with a smirk. "But you see she isn't my friend. The girl loathes me, so that makes it alright if I shower her with attention."  
  
"Stupid git," Sirius returned.  
  
James burst into hysterics again and then Remus woke up. After blinking sleepily a few times he grunted "Morning," as he sat up.  
  
"Morning Moony" James managed between laughs.  
  
Remus smiled slightly, "What's so funny?"  
  
Sirius said "Nothing" at the same time that James opened his big mouth. "Padfoot's just discovered that he isn't God's gift to women." Sirius grabbed the pillow that was the closest to him and threw it at James, hitting his friend in the face.  
  
"Bout time you realized that mate." Remus said while searching for his clothes. He couldn't see his face, but Sirius knew Remus was smirking.  
  
"Bloody hell," Sirius muttered, really not feeling up to being mocked by his best friends. He was still upset about last night and didn't feel like talking about it anymore.  
  
"So, what really happened?" Remus asked.  
  
And James answered in an annoying voice, "Bloom." Sirius chucked another pillow at him, but this one missed because James ducked.  
  
Remus laughed out loud. "Come on now Prongs. Let's hear what Padfoot here has to say." He eyed the pillows near Sirius apprehensively, probably wondering when Sirius was going to start throwing them at him.  
  
Sirius sat down on his bed frowning. There was no escaping it; they were going to keep harassing him until he told them. "She's a merciless tease."  
  
Remus said in a tone of mock seriousness, "Of course she is she's a girl. But I want to hear the part where you realized that you're not God's gift to-" Sirius grabbed a fluffy blue pillow and nailed Remus in the face with it, cutting him off. Tears were close to forming in James's eyes as he was laughing so hard.  
  
Sirius got angry. "I'm not that bloody arrogant you useless prats!"  
  
James got up from his bed and walked over to Sirius, speaking as he went. "Course you are. It's part of your charm." He patted Sirius on the back, teetering on the edge of danger as James always did.  
  
Sirius glared at him. "Well, you're just as conceited as I am."  
  
James nodded in agreement, "Yup."  
  
Remus spoke on his way to the door, "You're both pompous gits, but that's why everybody likes you." Sirius smiled a bit. Moony was right, they were both pretty full of themselves. "Now," Remus said in what they called his 'prefects voice', "get ready for school."  
  
With those parting words, Remus left both James and Sirius alone with Peter, who was now snoring loudly. Sirius ran a hand through his hair and reached for his wand, casting the summoning spell a few times to retrieve the pillows he had thrown.  
  
Finally, James had finished laughing and looked over at Sirius with an indulgent expression. "Look mate," Sirius scowled, but was a little curious as to what James had to say. "Bloom had a crush on you for years," this was news to Sirius, he had always figured that she was just into Remus, "but she gave up on you a while back. And now that you're slobbering all over her she's a bit insulted-"  
  
"Why the hell would she be insulted that I'm interested in her?" Sirius was beyond confused, convinced that he would never understand the workings of a female's mind.  
  
"Let me finish will you?" James said, standing up from his bed. "She's insulted because up until this year you never even considered her as a girl, she was just one of us."  
  
"But that's because she was ... oh!" It dawned on Sirius. Circe figured that he was only chasing after her because she had lost weight. And while it was true that he was attracted to her because of her looks, there was more to it than that.  
  
"And the light bulb goes off," James muttered, gathering his stuff as the boys began to walk to the showers.  
  
"But it's not only because she's pretty," Sirius sad, not at all embarrassed to be talking like this with James. James was his best friend and he didn't care if he came across insecure with him. James would never judge him.  
  
"Well ... than just leave it alone for a bit until she realizes that you do value her friendship. Maybe than she'll come around."  
  
Sirius arched an eyebrow at the sudden insight that James had acquired. He elbowed James playfully in the ribs, "Since when did you become an expert, eh?"  
  
"I've always been one. You've just been too stupid to come to me for advice." James voice held a tone of superiority and Sirius felt it was his duty to bring him back to earth.  
  
"Than how come you can't advise yourself on how to get Lily to be able to stand you?" James scowled at him and made to smack him in the back of the head before Sirius ducked, laughing. James started to laugh too and they continued on there way to get ready.  
  
After showering and going back up to their room to retrieve their wands they took one look at the clock and realized they were late. They woke up Peter, who scrambled to get ready, and rushed down to the Great Hall.  
  
When they reached the hallway in front of the dining area, Sirius spied Remus and Adriana. They were holding hands. "Moony, Finn," Sirius nodded at each as he slowed down and walked with them.  
  
He ran a hand through his hair and realized with a sigh that it was still wet. Oh well, he thought, James hadn't even managed to get his shirt on right (it was inside out).  
  
They got into the Great Hall and all took their seats, and when Sirius tried to smile at Circe, she glared and turned away. Sirius frowned, and began a conversation with James. Bloody hell, but girls were confusing.  
  
~*~A/N~*~ Hope you like this chapter ... !! 


	6. Day Trip to Hogsmeade

October 30th was to be the first Hogsmeade weekend of the Marauders Sixth year and everyone upwards from 3rd year (1st and 2nd years were not allowed to attend) was ecstatic.  
  
Everyone except for James and Sirius that is. Lily - whom James was madly in love with – had continued with her tradition of malicious rejection when he had asked her to "escort him to Hogsmeade and make him the happiest man alive". This had put James in such a sour mood that students were almost afraid to cross him in the halls for fear of being hexed.  
  
Sirius on the other hand, was a little less obvious about the reason he was not looking forward to the Hogsmeade trip. He was annoyed because Circe was still mad at him, although she had started talking to him again. Also, he was annoyed with her because she was going to Hogsmeade with her nauseatingly perfect boyfriend, Seamus. For the first time in his life, Sirius was jealous. And he did not like the feeling one bit.  
  
"Quit sulking and get ready." Remus teased his two best friends as he made his way over to the door. Remus was had taken great pains with his appearance that day because it was his first official date with Adriana. Sirius and James were both very happy for him. After all, it was about time that kid got a break and he had had it bad for the girl for years.  
  
"We're not sulking!" James glared at Remus as he sat up, tossing his legs over the side of his bed in an attempt to get up.  
  
Sirius threw an arrogant look at Remus. "Yeah. Prongs and I don't sulk. We may, on occasion be upset about things-"  
  
"Or displeased with a situation-"  
  
"Or on rare occasions, even brood-"  
  
"But we never-"  
  
"Ever-"  
  
"Sulk" James finished, crossing his arms over his chest. Remus laughed at their speech and, with one last quick glance in the mirror, left the room.  
  
Sirius walked over to Remus's bed, which was across from James's, and took a seat across from his friend. "I suppose there's not help for it. We're going to have to go down eventually, may as well bite the bullet and go now."  
  
"You've got a point there Padfoot." And with that said, both boys got ready slowly, each one 'brooding' over the disappointments they were being faced with. Girls could be a bloody nuisance. But as the saying goes, 'can't live with them, can't live without them.'  
  
When they finally finished getting ready, they made their way to the line-up for Hogsmeade at a snails pace. They met up with Peter on the way, who was excitedly keeping up the conversation while both of them just responded in as few words as possible.  
  
After entering the Wizarding town of Hogsmeade, the Marauder's moods lightened. It was good to be back here. And it was the only fully wizard inhabited town in all of London. They joked as they went into various shops, even spied on Remus and Adriana in the Three Broomsticks for a small time. But as they made their way through the town, things started to take a turn for the worse.  
  
Walking hand-in-hand down the hill by Honeydukes was Circe and Seamus. Sirius scowled and James, who had noticed Sirius's abrupt change in behavior and turned to look at the couple. "Let's go," James muttered, and as the three boys turned to walk away Circe spotted them and waved.  
  
"Hey guys!" She smiled at James widely and gave a brief glance at Sirius. She didn't acknowledge Peter at all.  
  
"Hey there Bloom, Malloy." James answered with a polite smile. As Sirius's best friend, he had taken a dislike to Seamus the same time that Sirius had and was not eager to spend a lot of time in his company.  
  
"Hi!" Peter said and Circe ignored him.  
  
Sirius merely nodded, not really wanting to talk.  
  
"So," Seamus began, slipping his arm around Circe's shoulders which caused Sirius's scowl to darken. "Circe was just telling me that you made Quidditch captain, eh Potter?"  
  
James nodded curtly. "Yeah. Aaron Diaz left last year so the spot was open."  
  
"I'm looking forward to when our teams get to face each other. Can't wait to beat Circe here." He laughed - the only one to do so - and Circe smiled indulgently. She was easily the best Chaser in the school and it was doubtful that the Hufflepuff team would even come close to beating them.  
  
Sirius fidgeted uneasily and Circe caught his eye. She smiled slightly at him but he didn't return the gesture. He really wished that he didn't have to stand there and talk. The last thing he wanted was to have to sit and watch as that prat Seamus handled Circe.  
  
Seamus turned his attention to Sirius and stood up straighter. Sirius smirked, if Malloy knew anything about his current relationship with Circe, he would probably consider Sirius a threat. "You're one of the beaters." It was a statement, not a question. Everybody knew that Sirius was a beater on the Gryffindor team.  
  
Sirius nodded in reply, giving Seamus a once over. Seamus was about an inch shorter than Sirius, and he was slightly pudgier. He had light brown, almost blond hair and blue eyes, and a bump in his nose where it had once been broken by a bludger. Now, Sirius knew that most girls found himself to be one of the most attractive guys in the school, with his dark hair, dark eyes, lean body, and his devastatingly handsome face. But Seamus was also on the top-ten list of Attractive Hogwarts Boys.  
  
"Black's one of the school's top beaters." Circe said and Sirius was startled at her praise. He turned his attention to her, raising his eye brow in question. Did this mean she wasn't mad at him anymore?  
  
Seamus tightened the arm he had around Circe, obviously uncomfortable with the way she was looking at Sirius. "You're not that great," he mumbled, bristling a bit.  
  
Before Sirius could respond with a witty remark James piped in "Course he is! Like to see you do better."  
  
Seamus flushed a bit. Peter, bolder than usual because he stood with both Sirius and James sneered a bit at Seamus and spoke. "Sirius is way better at Quidditch than you, and you know it!"  
  
Sirius frowned slightly. Sure, he was better than Seamus, but this discussion was only going to end with Circe getting mad at him, and that was something he really didn't want. He shifted uncomfortably hoping they would all part ways soon.  
  
Seamus glared at Peter who took a step sideways so that he half stood behind James. "That's a pretty cocky comment." He straightened his shoulders a bit, looking at Sirius straight on.  
  
Circe was now frowning at Sirius, and he bristled. Why the hell was she upset with him? He was the only one not saying anything!  
  
James scoffed and stood up straighter, noticing the tension that was arising between Sirius and Seamus and wanting to back his friend up. "It's true."  
  
"What do you have to say about it Black?" Seamus asked coldly, completely ignoring James. "You're being strangely silent."  
  
"I don't speak when I have nothing to say," Sirius returned, equally cold. His arrogance was battling with his infatuation with Circe, and that was the only thing that kept him from pulling out his wand and hexing Seamus. Christ, that guy was beginning to grate on him.  
  
"Nothing intelligent you mean." Seamus sneered and Sirius's eyes narrowed in annoyance.  
  
"Why don't you keep your mouth shut?" James asked his hand in his pocket. Sirius knew that it was clutched around his wand.  
  
"Looks like Potter here's your mouthpiece," Seamus laughed at his own joke and Circe once again glared at Sirius, causing him to get even more annoyed.  
  
"Yeah?" Sirius spoke and his voice was so quiet that Seamus had to strain to hear it. This was not a good sign, as whenever Sirius was particularly angry his voice would get quieter. "Got anything else to say while you have an audience?"  
  
Seamus sneered, his arm once again tightening around Circe. "No."  
  
"Good," Sirius said and began to walk away, trying desperately to avoid a confrontation for Circe's sake. James and Peter followed him, both shooting one last scathing glance at Seamus before going.  
  
"Stupid git," Seamus muttered under his breath. Sirius heard him and snapped. Before even thinking to reach for his wand and hex him, he turned around and punched Seamus in the face, right below his left eye. Seamus staggered backwards, letting go of Circe who stood gaping at the two guys. Both James and Peter watched with proud smiles on their faces.  
  
Seamus recovered from the shock of the attack and launched one of his own against Sirius, running at him and grabbing him around the middle, forcing him to the ground. A circle of spectators was beginning to form around them as they rolled in the dirt, punching each other. Students began to cheer for one or the other, but the majority was cheering for Sirius.  
  
They pounded on each other for a while, each completely unfazed by what was going on around them and equally desperate to win this fight. Suddenly, after they had both managed to get to their feet again and Sirius was about to swing, Seamus was hit by a stunning spell from someone in the crowd and he fell to the ground. Sirius was furious as he watched Circe run to his aid and his scowl deepened when he saw the glare she threw at him.  
  
Christ! He was so angry that he thought he might explode and he turned around to see who had interfered in his business. He was stunned for a second when he saw Remus staring back at him, wand in hand.  
  
"What the hell did you do that for Moony?!" He yelled, bringing back the attention of some of the people who had dispersed. They obviously thought another fight was about to begin and if it had been anyone but a fellow Marauder who had stopped him, they would have been right.  
  
Remus, unaffected by Sirius's anger at him yelled right back. "Oh shut it will you and act your age!" He sounded incredibly frustrated and Sirius wondered what reason he had to be.  
  
Sirius took a step forward and opened his mouth to shout back at Remus when he was interrupted by Circe who was angrier with him than she had ever been. "God damnit Black! You stupid, arrogant-"  
  
"Malloy had it coming Bloom." James interrupted crossing his arms and staring down at her. She glared at Sirius and James and then a stunned expression crossed her face for an instant. Sirius turned around to see what had caught her attention when he noticed Adriana standing behind the Marauders, looking extremely uncomfortable. He felt bad for her.  
  
Circe slid her arm around Seamus and began to help him up the hill. He was limping. Circe turned her head slightly and called over her shoulder. "Are you coming Ri?"  
  
Adriana glanced quickly between Remus and Circe trying to decide where her loyalties lay. Then with a small shrug she muttered "I'll see you later" to Remus and turned to walk away with Circe and Seamus.  
  
Sirius watched them walk away, seething on the inside. Seamus had deliberately provoked him and Circe had the gall to be mad at him for it? He had tried to keep his mouth shut but the idiot had gone too far.  
  
He vaguely heard Remus say something but he was to angry to care what. And then he heard James speak. "Sorry Moony. Didn't mean to ruin your date." It instantly dawned on him why Remus was so mad, but he didn't give a damn. It wasn't his fault.  
  
"If you'd just minded your own business than nothing would have been ruined." He growled at Sirius, feeling the need to point that out.  
  
Remus glared right back and didn't back down. "Yeah? Well what business did you have beating up Circe's boyfriend?"  
  
"He had it-"  
  
"Oh come off it! Don't tell me he had it coming! You've been acting like a jealous prat for days, I'm sure you were looking for any opportunity to jump Malloy." Remus said.  
  
Sirius flushed angrily. What rights did Remus have to come in here and comment? He hadn't been there; he didn't see what had happened.  
  
"That's not true!" But it was, he thought to himself. He was insanely jealous that Circe was dating Seamus, and a small part of him had wanted to get in a fight with him, just to let out his frustrations. But Seamus really had had it coming!  
  
Both James and Peter stared in shock at the two boys yelling at each other and Sirius knew why. The Marauders rarely fought with one another and it was a serious thing whenever they did.  
  
"Just leave the girl alone, will you?" Remus spat. And Sirius, all though he did not say it, wished he could. He wished he could just forget about Circe but it was so hard. She had captured his attention and he couldn't stop think about her. He barked a laugh at the irony that Hogwarts biggest ladies man had become ensnared.  
  
Neither Sirius or Remus spoke for a second and James cleared his throat looking at each of his friends. "Why don't we get going?" His voice was weary and Sirius felt chagrined that he was fighting with his friends.  
  
They walked back to Hogwarts in silence, each boy deep in his own thoughts. Sirius didn't speak to Remus for the rest of the night, still angry that he had interfered. And Remus didn't speak with Sirius, probably because he felt that Sirius was being too 'immature'.  
  
He went to bad that night, still bristling and disconcerted about what had happened. He replayed the scene over and over in his mind as if hitting rewind on a remote. Seamus had definitely deserved what had happened, and Circe would have to be a fool not to realize that. And she had seemed mad at him even before the fight. Glaring at him for stupid things that James and Peter had said.  
  
His last thought before drifting off to sleep was a resolution. Starting first thing tomorrow morning he was going to be completely over Circe Bloom. And it was good riddance. 

A/N Hope you enjoyed this chapter! Please Review!!!


	7. I Like You

The next morning, when Sirius woke up he was the only one left in the room. It was Sunday morning – no, Sunday afternoon at 12:45pm he discovered as he glanced groggily at his clock – and he was not in any great hurry to get up. He was still pissed off at Remus for interfering, although his anger had waned quite a bit. He sighed loudly as he rolled over onto his back. The dorm room was filled with sunlight, and no matter how much he wanted to, it seemed impossible that he would be able to fall back asleep.  
  
Sirius rolled lazily out of bed, and caught himself with his feet before falling to the ground. He ran a hand through his hair and stood up. Like a zombie, he made his way from the room after grabbing some clothes, and headed towards the showers. Maybe that would wake him, he mused.  
  
After showering and dressing, Sirius realized something that greatly annoyed him. His resolution of last night was not working at all. All he could really think about was Circe, and he was desperate to find her so he could swallow his pride and apologize.  
  
And even though the fight had not been entirely his fault, he knew that she blamed him anyway and he wanted to fix that.  
  
It was clear that he was in no way over Circe Bloom.  
  
When Sirius got down to the common room, there were only three people in there. Two second year boys and one first year girl. He ignored them and headed from Gryffindor tower in search of lunch.  
  
He made his way silently through the halls, deeply engrossed in thought. What would he do when he got his chance to talk to Circe? He had no idea what he would say, and was sure that she would probably not even want to talk to him. He scowled. Since when did he need to think of something to say? He never had to think about what he would say to girls, witty conversation always came naturally to him. It was one of the reasons he was so popular.  
  
Oh well, he mused. There was no hope for it. He was going to have to bite the bullet and talk to her, whether she wanted to listen or not.

* * *

Circe had finished her lunch quickly, anxious to get back to Gryffindor Tower and up into her dormitory. She had left her Transfiguration homework to the last minute and was frantic to get it done. She hated Transfiguration.  
  
Another reason she had wanted to escape the Great Hall early was because she did not want to have to face Sirius Black when he finally came down for food, which he inevitably would. She foolishly wished that his attention towards her wasn't because of how she looked now. She had always had a little crush on him, and they had been friends. But the only reason he was even attracted to her now was completely superficial. And she was so angry with him that she was afraid she might physically attack him if they even came close.  
  
Even though she knew that Seamus had been a real jerk yesterday, she had hoped that Sirius would be the better man and walk away. But he was far to conceited to do anything like that. If he had cared about her, he would have walked away. "Stupid prat" she muttered to herself as she rounded a corner, completely lost in her own thoughts.  
  
SMACK. Circe fell backwards and landed on her butt after she walked straight into a strong, solid person. Christ! Didn't people ever look where they were going anymore? She got up off the ground and brushed her bangs out of her eyes, turning to look at the person she had walked into – the person who now stood stalk still starring at her.  
  
"Watch where you're go-" she began to accuse angrily when she finally noticed who it was that she had bumped into. She stopped speaking and scowled darkly at the shocked face of Sirius. Why did it have to be him?  
  
"Circe," he muttered, running a hand through his hair and starring at her apprehensively. His expression would have been comical if she hadn't been so mad.  
  
"Black," she returned in the coldest voice she could muster. He narrowed his eyes in annoyance at her and she almost smiled in triumph. Good, she thought, be annoyed you arrogant berk. She started to walk past him but he sidestepped, blocking her passage. She glared up at him. "Let me get past," she growled.  
  
"Why should I?" Sirius asked arrogantly, crossing his arms and sidestepping again when she tried to get past him again.  
  
"Let me get past before I hit you," her tone was low and she crossed her arms so she wouldn't slap him.  
  
He shrugged and a taunting smile crossed his face. "Hit me? All I want to do is talk to you Ms Bloom" his voice was condescending and her hand clenched into a fist that ached to slug him.  
  
"I don't want to talk to you!" She said vehemently. Sirius's eyes flashed with an emotion she didn't recognize on him but she didn't analyze it.  
  
"Come on," he teased in mocking tones, "sure you do. Everybody likes to talk to me. Except Snape."  
  
Circe exploded. She was getting so sick of his arrogance and his self-assuredness! "No! I really don't! I'm sick of talking to you! You're constantly trying to ruin everything and I'm so sick of it! Just-"  
  
He started as if slapped, a hurt expression crossing his features for an instant, but then his eyes narrowed dangerously and she wasn't even sure if the hurt had really been there at all. "You won't even wait to see if I apologize!" he interrupted her, his voice rising angrily. "You just stand there all haughty as if everything is entirely my fault! Well, your ass of a boyfriend deserved it and you know it! You're just too stuck up to admit it." He finished.  
  
"I'm stuck up?" Her voice rose too and she glared at him, barking a mocking laugh. "You're the one who's too conceited to realize that maybe one girl in the world isn't madly in love with you! You won't leave me alone, and the only reason you have anything to do with me is because I'm not fat anymore!"  
  
He opened his mouth to say something, but then seemed to decide against it at the last moment. He scowled at her instead. "That's not true."  
  
"Yes it is!" She said, feeling a slight pang of hurt. "That's why you're jealous of Seamus!"  
  
"I'm not jealous," he scoffed but she was unconvinced. His actions spoke differently.  
  
Circe was seething and wanted to end this conversation now. "God-dammit Black! Must you ruin my life every chance you get? I wish you would just leave me alone! You're nothing but an arrogant self absorbed –"  
  
"I like you," Sirius said calmly but with enough confidence to interrupt her. The anger and annoyance was gone from him, his expression was unreadable.  
  
"Jerk who spends all his time" she stopped her tirade suddenly as if hit, "what did you just say?"  
  
"I like you," he stated again with a shrug, as if it didn't matter.  
  
"No - no you don't." Circe stuttered as a flush covered her face. She wasn't sure why, but those three words made her angrier than she had ever been.  
  
Sirius raised an eyebrow condescendingly. "How would you know?"  
  
"I just do!" He shrugged again as she yelled the words out.  
  
"Think what you will," he began to walk away, his face impassive and a strange expression in his eyes. "I'm going to get some lunch."  
  
Circe was left alone in the hall, flustered and confused as to what had just happened. Sirius Black, one of the most popular guys in school, had just said that he liked her. The same Sirius who she almost hated for his constant interference in her life since their sixth year had started. He constantly annoyed her, constantly harassed her, she should be disgusted that he had said what he had said.  
  
And Circe realized that she was smiling.

* * *

Sirius didn't greet his friends as he took his usual seat at the Gryffindor House table in the Great Hall. James was the only one to notice his strange mood as both Peter and Remus were in deep discussion with Kelsey Smithettes. James nudged him in the shoulder and his expression asked Sirius what was wrong.  
  
What was wrong? Everything. His discussion with Circe did not go at all as he had planned. He had had it all worked out in his mind. He was going to 'run into her' in the Dining Hall and than he was going to causally suggest that they talk. They would then go into a private classroom where she would start to yell at him. But he would say something witty and winning and she wouldn't be mad at him anymore. She would see that he was right in whatever argument he made and then she would break up with Seamus. And everything would be happily ever after.  
  
But it hadn't happened like that. Instead, he had come off sounding even more arrogant. He hadn't meant to tell her that he liked her, it had just come out and after he said the words there was no way he would ever be able to take. And her reaction had hit him hard. She hadn't seemed happy ... she had seemed disgusted.  
  
"Padfoot?" James elbowed Sirius pulling him away from his thoughts. "What happened?" James, who had known Sirius and was his best friend for years, knew precisely what the source of Sirius's moping.  
  
"I ran into Bloom in the hallway," Sirius shrugged, trying to make it seem as though this meant nothing to him.  
  
James gave him a pitying look. "I saw her earlier and she was still furious about what happened yesterday. Did she yell at you?"  
  
Sirius barked a self-deprecating laugh, "Just a little."  
  
James gave him a clap on the back and muttered "girls."  
  
"Well Prongs, who needs them anyway?" Sirius said, attempting to sound like his cocky self.  
  
James laughed and took a sip of his drink. "We do."

**A/N: _Thanks to everybody who has reviewed!! Hope you like this chapter ... there are better ones yet to come :P ... _**

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	8. Gryffindor vs Hufflepuff

Sirius avoided Circe over the next few days, which really wasn't hard as she was trying to avoid him too. At meal times they each talked to their own friends, they didn't converse in classes, and they only spoke when they had too during Quidditch practice. He only saw her and Seamus two times in the halls, and he felt that it was great progress that he hadn't gotten mad or upset in any way. Well, not really ... he was more disgusted with public displays of affection in the halls. Who the hell wanted to see them necking any way? He certainly didn't, and he certainly didn't care that Circe was all over Seamus. Didn't care at all ...  
  
In fact, by the end of the week after Sirius had told Circe he 'liked' her he had almost completely managed to convince himself that he was over her. After all, ladies men like Sirius didn't fall for girls, girls fell for them and if Circe was so set against having anything to do with him than why should he care? It's not like it was really jealousy that he was feeling when she laughed at something Seamus said, or when she smiled at the mention of his name. That wasn't him being jealous; he was just annoyed that a Gryffindor wasn't with another Gryffindor. And besides, Seamus Malloy was a stupid prat.  
  
Oh well ... the point was that Sirius now felt he was completely over Circe. No more trying to think about what he was doing wrong – it wasn't his fault she was too dumb to see how perfect he was – no more trying to get her attention. He was completely finished with her. Let her do what she wanted, he no longer cared.  
  
At least, he no longer cared whenever he didn't have to be around her. Whenever she wasn't around him, it was easy to think about how much he was over her. But the point that he wouldn't let enter his head was that even though he 'wasn't thinking about her' he was still thinking about how he wasn't thinking about her. In fact, it was all he ever thought about.  
  
James's hand suddenly waved an inch in front of Sirius's eyes and he jumped backwards, startled from his thoughts on being over Circe. "Earth to Padfoot. Have you been listening to a word I just said?"  
  
Sirius turned his head and looked at James, shooting him an annoyed look and pretending to be affronted. "Course I have Prongs."  
  
"Than what did I say?" James crossed his arms smugly, knowing full well that Sirius had no clue what James had been blithering on about.  
  
He wracked his brain for knowledge on James, not wanting to admit he hadn't been listening even though he knew he had been caught. He tried to think about topics James would want to say something about. Pranks. Lily Evans. Quidditch. Torturing Snape – wait! He vaguely remembered hearing something about a bludger. It was Quidditch. Sirius imitated James and crossed his own arms, leaning back slightly in his chair. "Quidditch."  
  
James arched a brow, "What about Quidditch?"  
  
Fuck, Sirius thought. "What not about Quidditch?"  
  
James laughed loudly and clapped Sirius on the back. "Now you're just not making sense." Sirius shrugged and smiled. "I was talking about the game against Hufflepuff. The game tomorrow against Hufflepuff."  
  
"Right. I knew that. Course I did." Sirius nodded and frowned slightly. There was a match against Hufflepuff and he hoped that he would get a chance to knock a bludger over at the teams captain Malloy. Of course, it had nothing to do with Malloy and Circe dating. It was just that Seamus deserved to have his big head knocked off that broom.  
  
"Sure you did mate. Sure you did." James laughed again and this time, when he began to speak, Sirius listened. It was time for some strategy.

* * *

The next day, when the time for the match came, Sirius was no longer so convinced he was over Circe. By some stroke of fate he had ended up sitting next to her on the bench as Julian Everett – Gryffindor's Keeper and the most optimistic teammate – gave the team a motivational pep-talk and a recap of today's game strategy along with James. But he didn't listen fully. Instead, he watched Circe listen from the corner of his eyes as she stared intently back at Julian. He watched as her mouth curved into a smile when he said something funny, and he watched as her face set into determination when James went on about how Gryffindor had to keep the Quidditch Cup in their name for another year.  
  
She looked so beautiful with her bangs falling stubbornly close to her eyes and her dark blue eyes that seemed to reflect heaven in their depths. He forgot all about his resolve to be over her and he sighed as she smiled yet again. Sirius was almost disgusted with himself. He had become so obsessed with Circe and it was pitiful. He had never thought that he would be one of the many who adored a girl who didn't even know they existed. Or worse. Knew they existed but just didn't care enough.  
  
"Alright than," Julian's thick cockney accent as he rolled his shoulders back and nodded appraisingly at his teammates. "'Bout time we got out there than. Best of luck mates, let's not botch it."  
  
James finished the pep-talk appropriately as he was captain. "Let's have fun out there and kick Hufflepuff into tomorrow!"  
  
With that, the rest of the team let out a cheer, Sirius belatedly letting out a yell of appreciation. The Gryffindor's than made their way out of the change room and onto the pitch, James and Sirius leaving last as James put a hand on his shoulder to still him. "Thought you were over her mate?" James whispered mockingly as he laughed at his best friend.  
  
Sirius scowled darkly at James. "I am."  
  
"Right." James laughed again, picking up his pace and dropping his voice to a whisper as they reached the rest of their team on the pitch. "Let's just hope you can keep your eyes on the bludger instead of on Bloom."  
  
Sirius swung his bat lightly and hit James playfully in the arm. James laughed again. Sirius's fellow beater, Angela Hall, winked at him as he shrugged sheepishly at her. She was a fifth year and frequently made it obvious that she was interested in him. The other team members included Jess Morin and Reese Farrell who were chasers along with Circe. Both boys were in fifth year and were riots, always regaling the team with some tall tale. They were also really good at their position, but not nearly as good as Circe.  
  
The stadiums were filled to the brim and Sirius looked around haughtily, recognizing Moony, Adriana, Wormtail, and Kelsey Smithettes sitting in second row on the Gryffindor side. Kelsey waved at him shyly and he waved back wanting to be nice. He continued scanning the crowd and then moved on to look at the Hufflepuff team. His mood instantly darkened.  
  
Shaking hands with James as the captains were required to do was Seamus Malloy. Behind him stood the rest of Hufflepuffs team. The other two chasers (Peter Johnston and Steven Jackson), the keeper (Guy Reid), the beaters (Colin Birmingham and Misty Morneau) and the teams' seeker (Nicole Ernst). They were a good team, but not nearly as skilled as the Gryffindors.  
  
Seamus, right before turning to stand in position, winked at Circe and than shot a stony glare at Sirius. Sirius only smirked back, not wanting to let on how annoyed he was with the ever perfect Hufflepuff. Seamus got into his position and did not offer another glance at Sirius as they took off from the ground, the game started.  
  
Cheers sounded as the commentator made the play-by-play. It started with Reese and Circe shooting the quaffle at Guy Reid twice before even a minute had gone by. Circe scored on Reese's rebound making it 10-0 for Gryffindor. Birmingham shot a bludger at Morin but Sirius managed to deflect it and – completely by accident – hit Seamus with it instead. Circe scored another goal on Hufflepuff.  
  
As the game went on, Gryffindor dominated and after twenty minutes of playing they lead the game 90-20. Sirius hit another two bludgers at Seamus and when the second one nearly knocked him off his broom Circe flew towards him. "Watch it Black" she hissed as she zoomed away, catching the quaffle from Morin and throwing it to Farrell who scored once again. Gryffindor leads by 80 points.  
  
Sirius shook his head and ran his hand through his hair as it started to rain and he watched as Angela Hall shot a bludger at Misty Morneau, preventing Misty from hitting Jess Morin. He watched and smiled as Circe intercepted a pass between Steven Jackson and Seamus and threw it to Reese. He laughed to himself as Seamus glared at Circe, clearly frustrated that his team was suffering a humiliating loss.  
  
The rain began to poor down harder, but luckily, after only a forty-five minute game James dove down near to the ground - pulling up only just before he hit the ground - and caught the golden snitch, much to the dismay of Nicole Ernst who had been neck in neck with him and so close to reaching the snitch. Gryffindor won the game at 270-90.  
  
The supporters in red and gold erupted into cheers of glory as a very subdued Hufflepuff crowd made their way slowly from the stands. The Hufflepuff team shook hands with the Gryffindors as they all landed on the ground, and when it came time to shake Seamus's hand, Sirius smiled condescendingly at him while Seamus refused to even look at him.  
  
The Gryffindor team was ecstatic as this was a great way to start a new season. James had a foolish grin that stretched from ear to ear and he and Julian were euphoric as the teams grouped together in the center of the field. They excitedly made their way to the change room, already starting to decide on a new strategy for the next game against Ravenclaw. Sirius hung back a bit in the rain as he watched Circe give Seamus a quick hug before she made her way to join her teammates. He scowled but she didn't appear to notice.  
  
Inside the change room another motivational speech was given, this one by James who congratulated the entire team on their performance and promised there would be a celebration in the Common Room that night. And even though it wasn't the most important game, it was the first one of the season and the first one that James had ever been captain for and he was beyond happy that his leadership seemed to be working out.  
  
"Nice game, eh Sirius?" Angela asked as she stood close to his side, her arm brushing his, smiling sweetly at him.  
  
"Great one," he replied, giving one of his most charming smiles at her as he watched Circe out of the corner of his eye. She was talking to Reese and kept glancing over at him. Sirius thought that was a good sign.  
  
"You're so good out there on that broom ... maybe you could show me some tricks sometime?" Angela asked hopefully as she shifted her feet and moved her body so that her chest was thrust out a bit. She grinned coyly.  
  
"Sometime," he said raising an eyebrow and dazzling her with another smile.  
  
She smiled stupidly back at him and opened her mouth to speak when Jess called her name. She rolled her eyes, shrugged, and walked over to Jess, leaving Sirius standing alone. He looked around the room casually, not wanting to interrupt James who was deep in discussion with Julian. And as he scanned the room his eyes caught Circe's and he noticed that she was watching him. She smiled a bit and jerked her head slightly, indicating that he should come over. He nodded and walked over, joining her and Reese.  
  
Reese didn't stop talking as Sirius approached. "-Of course that's no way to tell if we're really all that great. After all, it was only Hufflepuff – no offense meant to Malloy or anything – but that team has never been in the same skill level as ours. Ravenclaw might be an interesting game, but I'm really looking forward to whooping Slytherin – oh hey Black."  
  
Sirius nodded and smiled at Reese. "Admit it Farrell, it was a good game." Circe said, pretending to be stern. Reese's smile widened and he said "Good game."  
  
Sirius chanced a glance down at Circe and watched her smiling out of the corner of his eye. Her hair was drenched, but the bangs had begun to dry, and she looked stunning. Her cheeks were flushed from the cool air from outside.  
  
"Well, I suppose I ought to change than," Reese said, smiling once more and making his way towards the showers. "See you two tonight."  
  
"Later Farrell," Sirius said.  
  
Sirius and Circe were left alone in the corner. Reese, Jess, and Angela had all left the change room and Julian and James were far too deep in conversation to notice anyone else. Sirius swallowed slightly and ran a hand through his damp hair. "You did a good job out there, scored most of the goals." He attempted to be casual, but his voice trembled a bit and he cursed himself.  
  
Circe blushed a bit and smiled at him, forgetting their mutual decision to not speak just long enough so they could congratulate one another. "You weren't so bad out there yourself, eh Black?" She raised an eyebrow at him. "But maybe next time you could be a little more careful and not try to knock the opposing teams' captain off his broom?"  
  
"Maybe" he teased back. She laughed and they both turned at the same time to head for the change room. But Circe's foot caught on her robe and she tripped, falling sideways into Sirius who caught her in his arms, her momentum knocking him off his feet so that they landed on the bench, her sitting on his lap.  
  
Neither spoke for a moment, Sirius loosened his grip on her, giving her a chance to get up if she wanted to. His breathe came a bit faster as she tilted her head sideways, looking at him with an awed expression on her face. He saw her eyes widen and she swallowed, her lips barely an inch away from his.  
  
It was amazing to him how fast the mood changed between them, how fast the tension arose. More than anything in the world, he wanted to kiss her. He moved his face forward a bit; testing the waters to see what she would do if he tried to kiss her. She didn't move, only swallowed again. Her cheeks were flushed and he moved forward again, pressing his lips gently to hers. She put her hand up on his shoulder and he began to deepen the kiss when he heard something that made him feel as if he was being doused with a bucket of cold water.  
  
"Erm." It was James's voice and Circe pulled away, practically leaping of Sirius's lap and nearly falling over again as she slid on some water that covered the ground. Her entire face turned scarlet and she mumbled a quick "excuse me" as she rushed to change. Sirius turned and scowled at James who bore a cocky, knowing grin. "Over her, under her, all the same difference to you, eh mate?"  
  
"Oh sod off!" Sirius shot back, feeling his face redden a bit. He stood up and made his way towards the showers to cool off. He thought to himself as he took his regular clothes from his locker that Circe Bloom was definitely something special. And he still didn't get her, how she refused to talk to him one moment and then flirted with him the next. It was beyond his comprehension how her mind worked. But he would soon find out, that he was sure off. 

**A/N_ sorry for the long time no update! Hope you enjoyed this chapter... there is more to come and the plot will most assuredly deepen! Keep reading and special thanks to all my reviewers!! It's always so sweet to read reviews!_**


	9. Attack on the Mudblood

That night the entire Gryffindor Student body crowded into the common room to celebrate a good start to the Quidditch season and socialize. The Marauders, who prided themselves on knowing 'every' secret passage in the school managed to sneak down into Hogsmeade and purchase an abundance of sweets and Butterbeer for the party. They also snuck down into the kitchens and got the house elves to give them food. Overall, the party was a great success, with the Gryffindor team hailed as heroes.  
  
It was also a great success from Sirius's point of view because he managed to stay on good terms with Circe. They sat together on the couch in front of the fire and talked for two hours with Jess Morin, Angela Hall and Fiona Davis, another fifth year girl. When one o'clock rolled around Mika Jones (A seventh year genius and Head Girl) spoke up that it was time they headed to bed. With her urging, all the other prefects, including Remus, convinced the crowds to disperse.  
  
Sirius said good night to his fellow teammates and sat lazily on the couch not wanting to go to bed just yet as everyone headed up. Adriana, Lily, and Kelsey left, dragging Circe with them. She went reluctantly which he was pleased to note, and smiled at him ruffling his hair as she went past the couch, making Sirius smile stupidly. The Marauders, excluding Sirius, all went up to bed as the room started to empty and soon there were only six people left in the common room. Sirius decided it was about time that he went up to his dorm, and was about to do so when he was stopped by a hand on his arm. He turned slightly and looked into the eyes of Fiona, the same girl who had been hanging onto his every word earlier.  
  
"Hey there Sirius," Fiona breathed silkily, looking up at him with a secretive smile on her lips. She was a very pretty girl, with thick dark blonde hair that shone like gold in the firelight. She had dark grey eyes and thick red lips. She had a petite body too, and knew exactly how to position it to get the 'right kind' of attention. She was short too; 5'5" and the top of her head came just to the top of his chest. He knew a lot of guys who had dated her, including Reese and Jess, and everyone who did spoke of her appraisingly. In fact, there were a lot of guys who dated her based solely on her 'talents', but they all got bored rather soon. She was best friends with Angela Hall, and he knew for a fact that she was interested in him. After all, a lot of girls were.  
  
"Ms Davis," Sirius smiled back at her flirtingly, turning a bit more so that he faced her completely.  
  
She laughed and ran her hand down his arm, her eyes flitting obviously down to his mouth in a practiced way. Fiona was a notorious flirt. "I like it a lot better when you call me Fiona."  
  
"Do you?" He said, raising his eyebrow and leaning casually against the doorframe. To any woman who saw him by chance at that moment, they would have thought him to be completely gorgeous. A poster boy for good looks.  
  
"Yes," Fiona said, stepping a bit closer to him, almost too close.  
  
"Ok Fiona," Sirius said, leaning back a little so that he could keep his space.  
  
Fiona laughed again and ran a hand through her hair, thrusting out her chest a bit. Sirius's eyes dropped to admire the area she was so determined for him to see. And he didn't feel at all like a cad for doing so because Fiona very obviously wanted him to. And besides, Sirius was a man, and men rarely passed up an opportunity to admire that which is admirable.  
  
"You played a really good game out there." She breathed again, her voice meant to sound sexy. It would have too, if she hadn't mentioned the game. But mentioning the Quidditch match got Sirius thinking about Circe, and when he thought about her, no other woman seemed attractive.  
  
"I played alright," he said, crossing his arms. "Bloom was what won the game for us though." Fiona scowled slightly which amused Sirius. A lot of girls at Hogwarts didn't like Circe, Lily, or Adriana because they were all very pretty, smart, and popular. Girls didn't like competition and those three girls were definitely competition.  
  
"James caught the snitch. And you stopped Hufflepuff from scoring a bunch of goals." Fiona said, trying once more to get him to focus his attention on her breasts.  
  
Sirius shrugged lightly, and decided he was ready to go to bed. Three other people had left the common room and now it was only himself, Fiona, and a fourth year boy whom Sirius didn't recognize who had fallen asleep in a chair.  
  
When he didn't comment Fiona shifted positions again and spoke. "Well, aren't you going to ask me why I wanted to talk to you?"  
  
He didn't reply, only raised a brow. He knew why she wanted to talk to him, it was pretty obvious.  
  
"I was really hoping that you and I could get together sometime," Fiona purred. "You know, we could ... talk or something." This time it was she who raised her brow and he knew that if they ever got together the last thing they would do was talk. They'd probably stick to the 'something', and he had a pretty good idea what that 'something' was.  
  
He didn't outright shoot her down, as he hated to do that. After all, you never knew when you would change your mind. Instead he gave her a mischievous smile. "Sometime." Fiona beamed up at him and seemed about to name a time when Sirius interrupted her. "But it's getting awfully late and I better get my rest. You know, being a star Quidditch player and all that." He turned back around and began to walk up the stairs to his dorm, leaving Fiona looking flustered and slightly annoyed.  
  
By the time he dressed into his pajamas and slid into his warm bed Fiona Davis and her invitations had completely vanished from his mind. Instead, the only face he saw as he drifted off to sleep and the one that inhabited his dreams that night was Circe. His last thought that night, even through his bliss at having her treat him sweetly, was that he really needed to get over that girl.

* * *

The next day was a Sunday and Sirius and James decided that it was high time they do their homework. Since Peter decided to sleep in that day as he had done his homework the night before, and Remus was planning on spending the entire day with Adriana, Sirius and James were on they're own.  
  
"I think these teachers are competing to see who can get me to crack first." James muttered scornfully as he flipped through his potions text book. Their potions teacher, Professor Smyth had decided to assign them a lengthy essay, as did Professor Flitwick (Charms), Professor McGonagall (Transfiguration), and Professor Erickson (Arithmacy). And even though both Sirius and James were exceptionally smart, being smart didn't save them from the annoyance of a long essay.  
  
"Tough luck Prongs. Stress is the way of weeding out the weak." Sirius said in mock serious tones as he shoved several books into his bag for their trek down to the library.  
  
James scoffed. "Weak? Nah Padfoot. I think the Professors are doing it out of spite, they want to see us fail."  
  
"They love us," Sirius stated, knowing full well that even though their teachers acted stern towards the Marauders because they had to, deep down they loved the four boys for their antics, and for their brains. James, Remus and Sirius were easily the smartest boys at Hogwarts.  
  
James shrugged and stood up off his bed, pretending to be unable to lift his bag which was stuffed with text books. "So ... heavy." He mumbled.  
  
Sirius laughed and began to walk out of the room. "Weak!" He shouted back to his friend as he attempted to close the door in James's face. Prongs laughed and together the boys joked around as they made their way out of Gryffindor tower and down the halls.  
  
When they were only a few corridors away from the library the boys were stopped dead in their tracks at the sound of several voices. They exchanged a look and each boy dropped their bag on the ground.  
  
"Filthy Mudblood!" Sirius heard the vehement words spoken from around the corner and with a nod at James the two sprinted over to see what was going on. What they saw made Sirius's heart leap into his throat and his veins went hot with anger. He pulled out his wand and yelled "Stupefy!" the same time as James did.  
  
Two of the fourth year Slytherins that had been standing around Circe hit the ground and the other three turned and looked over. Circe, who had tears streaming down her face and a nasty slash down one of her cheeks looked over at her saviors with relief. Sirius saw red at the idea that anyone had hurt her.  
  
"What do you lot think you're doing?" James said his tone dangerous. The remaining fourth years, only one of whom Sirius recognized as Lucius Malfoy, all looked around nervously. They had obviously not expected this interference from the two most dangerous boys in the school.  
  
"Stay out of it," a student at the back said, trying to sound brave but failing miserably as his voice faltered and cracked.  
  
Sirius barked a cold laugh and pointed his wand at the stupid boy, "Impedimenta!" The boy was knocked backwards.  
  
At the same time James yelled "EXPELLIARMUS!" and deftly caught the wands that had flown from the attackers hands. They looked terrified now.  
  
Sirius turned to the boy that he figured was the ring leader and pointed his wand at him "Petrificus Totalus!" The boy's arms and legs snapped together and he hit the ground with his friends. The other boys got up and grabbed their friend, running off down the hallway. Sirius let them go, fighting the urge to chase after them and then turned his attention to Circe who was standing in shock, blood running down her cheek. Her shoulders were shaking and he realized that she was sobbing. She looked from him to James and then back at him and their eyes met for an intense moment.  
  
James cleared his throat and spoke, "You OK there Bloom?"  
  
She nodded slowly. "They ambushed me." She took a deep breath and spat out her next words, "bloody cowards." And even though she tried to sound brave, Sirius knew that she was completely shaken.  
  
Sirius walked towards her as she spoke and touched her cheek. "You're bleeding," he said softly. She brought her hand up and touched the cut on her cheek, looking shocked at the blood.  
  
"Do you need to see Madam Pomfrey?" James asked.  
  
"I'm alright; the stupid gits didn't know any good spells anyway." She laughed nervously and Sirius put a protective arm around her, surprised at the urge. She looked up at his face and relaxed a bit in his arms. He suddenly realized something then that almost made him choke on his heart. It couldn't be possible, he thought.  
  
"I know!" James said as the three started walking towards Gryffindor tower. "How bout a nice glass of Butterbeer to make you feel better?"  
  
"Sounds good," said Circe shakily.  
  
Sirius was the only one not smiling. In fact, he didn't smile for the rest of the night when the trio, along with the other two Marauders and Adriana, sat chatting happily. He had too much going through his mind. Uncharacteristically he went to bed early, claiming he had a headache. But as he lay there in his bed, starring at the ceiling he decided that what he had realized had to be true. It explained his obsession with her and his protectiveness. It even explained his reactions to everything she did.  
  
Sirius Black was in love for the first time, and he was in love with Circe.

* * *

This realization wasn't any less disturbing when he woke up the next morning. In fact, after dreaming of her all night, the knowledge that he was in love only caused him more confusion than he had ever felt before. He couldn't help but wonder how this could possibly have happened. Sure, when Circe had come back after the summer she had toned up and become even more beautiful, but it was more than that. He liked spending time with her, he liked hearing her laugh. He liked everything about her, even the things that made him mad.  
  
When Sirius took his usual seat next to James at the Gryffindor House Table at breakfast that morning he was still so deep in thought that he didn't hear Remus or James as they tried to get his attention. It wasn't until James 'accidentally' knocked a glass of pumpkin juice in his lap that Sirius finally noticed his friends.  
  
"You stupid prat!" He yelped as he felt the juice spread over his robes. He glared at James who was howling with laughter. "Bloody hell prongs!"  
  
Sirius calmed back down when Remus uttered a cleaning spell and the juice was instantly cleaned up. He mumbled quick thanks and sat back down.  
  
"What's up with you anyway Padfoot? You've been starring off into space since yesterday?" Remus questioned Sirius.  
  
Sirius shifted uncomfortably as James glanced down the table where Lily, Circe, Adriana, and Kelsey all sat. "You have been acting pretty weird since the attack yesterday." James pointed out the obvious.  
  
"Just been thinking." Sirius mumbled in reply.  
  
"Bout Bloom?" James asked a bit too loudly for Sirius's comfort so he kicked him underneath the table, bringing forth an expletive "OW!"  
  
Sirius decided that it really wasn't the time to admit his infatuation, even if it was only to his best friends. "Naw, just been thinking about the attack. I mean, if people at school are attacking Muggle born wizards, than maybe there is some truth in the rumors."  
  
This comment wiped the smile right off James's face as effectively as windshield wipers. It was a terrible thing, attacks on 'mudbloods' as they were so scornfully called. And rumor had it that the attacks, which had been going on for centuries, were becoming more common. It was almost as if somebody was leading pureblood wizards into attacking.  
  
"No way," James said, attempting to smile again but it didn't reach his eyes. "These kinds of attacks have been going on for years, and while it may be completely disgusting, it's nothing new.  
  
"Yeah," said Remus, who also looked uncomfortable. "Those kids from Slytherin were probably just mimicking something they'd heard at home. Thought they'd get some kicks out of ambushing Circe."  
  
Sirius nodded, once again feeling dread well in the pit of his stomach. He's never considered the fact that Circe was Muggle born before, and if the rumors were true, that meant she'd be in a lot of trouble.  
  
The three boys were silent for a somber moment until James decided to break the quiet. "It's probably high time we headed to class." Remus, Sirius, and James all got up from their seats and made their way to class.  
  
James suddenly stopped in his tracks and groaned loudly. "Bloody hell! We've got double potions today and I forgot to finish that stupid essay!" Sirius too had forgotten all about their homework and the boys debated ditching Transfiguration to catch up. They had just decided they were indeed going to skip when they passed Professor McGonagall who 'escorted' the three boys to class.  
  
As they made their way to their seats at the back of the class James groaned once more. "Professor Smyth is definitely going to give us detention for this." Sirius only nodded in agreement, his thoughts once more completely occupied with Circe Bloom.

**_A/N: Hope you enjoyed this chapter ... things are really starting to heat up and in the next couple chapters - wait! guess you'll have to read to find out :P ... Thanks very much for the reviews!! They mean so much :D_**


	10. The First Training Session

It wasn't until the bell rang and Remus nudged Sirius that he remembered they had to head to Double Potions, without the homework. He scowled darkly as the Marauders made their way to the Potions Dungeon. And his scowl deepened when he entered the room to find that all of the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff students were standing in a circle around the desks, watching apprehensively as Professor Smyth went around the room, placing a card on each seat.  
  
"Each one of these cards," Smyth's voice droned scathingly, "has a name written on it. One of your names. You will sit where your name is, and that will be your seat for the rest of the year. The other person seated at your station will be your partner." He placed the last card on a chair near the very front and turned to face his students, his eyes instantly falling on the Marauders as he continued speaking. "This is my NEWTs class, and as it is so, I refuse to have it turned into a circus by arrogant students who feel they are above rules." Peter was the only one who blushed as all of the students eyes turned on the Marauders. "Now, I expect you to quietly find your seats, it shouldn't be too hard as they are in alphabetical order."  
  
Sirius felt his stomach drop at that last sentence. Alphabetical order? He gulped slowly as he made his way to the far left corner where the B's were situated. Sure enough, just as he had expected, Black was scrawled in elegant handwriting across a snow white card. And right next to it, on the chair at this station, was the name Bloom. Sirius swallowed hard once more as he took his seat.  
  
"Black," Circe smiled at him. After he and James had saved her yesterday they were on even better terms. She seemed to have completely forgotten his fight with Seamus and the incident when he had told her that he liked her. She took the seat next to him and he shifted again. How on earth did Smyth expect him to get any work done while he was partners with Circe? It was more likely that he would spend a day with James and not get into trouble.  
  
He turned around to see where his friends were sitting. Adriana Finn and Lily Evans were next to each other, as were Peter and James whose last names both started with P's. Remus was sitting next to a Hufflepuff girl by the name of Erin Lester.  
  
"Well, at least you and I are together. I could have been stuck with Peter." Circe smiled at him and he tried to smile back, having his attempt end up looking more like a grimace.  
  
They didn't get another chance to talk for the first hour of the class as Professor Smyth spent the entire time explaining the potion they were to attempt that day, and publicly berating the four students who hadn't finished their essays. He then assigned another one to be handed in with the first early the next morning. If it wasn't handed in there would be "dire consequences indeed."  
  
But when they finally did talk Sirius forgot his nervousness as they chatted comfortably over a boiling cauldron of Metrius Donnius – a potion that was supposed to cure depression in wizards. At first they talked about what had happened the day before, and she thanked him profusely for his help. They then moved onto a more comfortable topic: Quidditch.  
  
Circe laughed as she spoke, "Seamus was pretty furious that we creamed them in the match on Saturday. He was so convinced he was going to beat us."  
  
The mention of Seamus's name bothered Sirius but he brushed it off as best he could and smiled back at her, telling himself repeatedly that he was supposed to be over her. "You were amazing out there! They didn't stand a chance."  
  
Circe blushed at the complement and swept her bangs out of her eyes. "Thanks. You did great out there too."  
  
Sirius shrugged her comment off. "Not nearly as good as you." These words were completely and utterly true. Circe was easily the best Quidditch player at Hogwarts and he felt no shame in admitting that she was better than him.  
  
"I'm still not good enough to play professionally though." Circe said her brow furrowing a bit as she poured some crushed Mandrake root into their potion.  
  
"Have you tried any training?" Sirius questioned.  
  
"Naw," she tilted her head so that she was looking at him sideways. "I haven't done any of the professional training techniques, can't really afford the lessons. I practice whenever I can though."  
  
A light bulb went off in Sirius's head. This was perfect. He couldn't believe that he hadn't thought to try it before. "One of my parents good friends played for England you know." She nodded, her curiosity sparked as he began to draw her in. "He taught me some techniques they used to use to train ... I could show them to you if you wanted. It could be like I'm your personal coach or something."  
  
Circe smiled at him and he felt his heart rise into his throat. "That would be brilliant!" The words rushed out of her mouth and she seemed to realize how eagerly she had spoken because she blushed lightly. "I mean, if you wouldn't mind that would definitely be really great."  
  
"Meet me at the pitch tonight at 6:30." She smiled once more and they talked until the end of class about Quidditch and Sirius instructed her not to where her robes, but to wear Muggle clothes which were easier to maneuver in.  
  
As they made their way out of the class, she turned to him and gave him a quick hug just before he left the door. "Thanks so much Black! This means a lot!"  
  
He blushed a bit and mumbled "anytime." And he walked to the Dining Hall for lunch with a stupid grin on his face, James teasing him mercilessly for the rest of the day.

* * *

Sirius met Circe out at the Quidditch pitch that night at 6:30, just as they had agreed. She smiled shyly at him and he took the chance to give her the once-over. She had obeyed his request and not worn her robes. Instead, she wore dark blue bellbottom jeans and an England Football Team Jersey that was just one size too big and hung down past her hips. It was her favorite team - Manchester United - but he had never found what was so appealing about a group of Muggles kicking a ball into a net. Her hair was pulled back into a messy pony, the red and orange highlights twining together and shining in the light like fire. She wore no makeup, but was still the most beautiful girl he had ever seen.  
  
"Hi," Circe said, sweeping her bangs out of her eyes.  
  
"Oi," He returned with a nod. She looked nervous and Sirius smiled widely. "Ready to practice for the big time?" He said gesturing to the pitch with his broom, his tone teasing.  
  
Circe took a deep breathe and smiled bravely at him, "Of course."  
  
Sirius led the way out into the middle of the pitch which was illuminated by the orange glow of the sun. He placed his broom on the ground and signaled for her to do the same. She raised an eyebrow quizzically at him, but did as he wanted.  
  
"OK. This first thing that we're gonna do is a balance trick that the Bulgarian team does before every game." He stood so that his feet were shoulder width apart and stood up straight. She mimicked him.  
  
"Balance trick. Right. Gotcha." She smiled once more at him and his insides twisted a bit. Christ she was gorgeous, he thought.  
  
With her full attention on him, Sirius stepped so that he stood on his broom, the arch of his feet balancing on its long handle. Circe's eyes widened in a mixture of awe and apprehension as his broom raised a foot off the ground, Sirius standing upright in the centre of it. "Think you can do that?" He said as he returned to the ground after hovering for a moment.  
  
She nodded slowly and mumbled "I'll try."  
  
"OK. First, put your feet on the broom," she did as he said, putting her feet in the exact same position that his had been. "Now, raise your broom a bit." Before her broom had even gotten an inch off the ground she tipped forward and landed right into him, he slid his arms around her. "Alright?"  
  
Circe flushed and pushed herself out of his grip, standing in front of her broom again. "It's harder than you made it look." She scolded playfully.  
  
Sirius shrugged. "Here, I'll do it too and you can lean on me a bit. Now, try again." Circe gave him a skeptical look but did as she was told, putting her feet back on the broom and resting the palms of her hands on his chest. He shivered a bit at her touch but she didn't notice.  
  
"I'm ready." She said, looking up at him from under her bangs which had fallen across her eyes again. He brushed them away and smiled. "Up we go."  
  
The brooms raised into the air until they were two feet above the ground. Circe slid a little and gripped his shirt, but did not fall off. He brought his broom a bit closer to hers and they rose another two feet. "Now, we're gonna stay at this height for a bit, OK?"  
  
Circe nodded slowly, her eyes on the grass below. "Don't look at the ground," he scolded gently. She brought her head up until their eyes met and for an intense moment neither looked away. Her dark blue eyes stared into his, searching for something. Sirius's pulse quickened and his blood heated. What was she looking for?  
  
Her feet shifted a bit on the broom and she almost lost her balance but he put his hands on her hips, keeping her still. She smiled slightly at him, but he couldn't manage one back. He wanted her so bad it was almost painful, and he was thankful for his baggy jeans and shirt that prevented her from noticing.  
  
They rose another foot in the air at his urging. They were now five feet above ground.  
  
"You're heart," she said, moving one hand over his chest causing him to shiver again. "It's beating really fast." She had an amazed quality about her.  
  
"Yeah," he mumbled, and blushed a bit, preying she wouldn't notice. He fixed his gaze over her shoulder, trying to cool down.  
  
"Afraid of heights?" She teased quietly.  
  
He brought his gaze back to her face and memorized every feature. "No."  
  
She raised an eyebrow, "Afraid of me?"  
  
Yes, he thought to himself. But not exactly, he wasn't really afraid of her, more afraid of how crazy she made him feel. With any other girl he was easygoing and witty, but with her ... with her everything he did or said came out wrong.  
  
He didn't answer her question and they hovered in an awkward silence for a minute. Not being able to stand it any more he removed his hands from her waist. "OK. I think you're ready to try it on your own. Slowly let go of me," he commanded.  
  
Circe looked at him apprehensively and he reassured her, "I won't let you fall." She dropped one hand from his chest, almost falling for a second, but regained her balance. After a second she removed her other hand and stayed in the air on her own.  
  
"I did it!" She grinned widely as they went back to the ground. He smiled shakily back at her and ran a hand through his hair. He needed to get away from her before he did something he'd regret. He was so turned on right now he was afraid it was going to kill him.  
  
"Yeah. Well, we can go back now then." He was flustered and knew he must sound like an idiot.  
  
"Wait," she said, frowning and glancing down at her watch. "It's only seven, aren't we going to practice some other training techniques?" Circe raised an eyebrow at him and smiled playfully.  
  
"No!" She jumped a bit at the forcefulness of his response. "We could ... We'll practice some more another day."  
  
"Come on Black, you said you'd help me train! Besides, you couldn't hope for better conditions than this." Circe pleaded, gesturing around the pitch as she spoke.  
  
Sirius exhaled slowly and looked at Circe from the corner of his eye. The expression on her face was so adorable that he couldn't say no. He took another deep breath and tried in vain to cool himself down. "Fine."  
  
"Awesome!" Circe smiled widely and went forward, giving him a hug. He was stunned by her excitement and stood awkwardly until she let go. She looked so amused at his reaction that he blushed again.  
  
"Right," he walked away from her, trying to think of a technique that they could practice without being close together. If he had to touch her one more time he was convinced that he would just drag her into a bush and have at it. "We'll do dives." Sirius mounted his broom.  
  
Circe sneered. "Seriously Black! I already know dives," she whined up at him as he circled the pitch.  
  
"Well ..." he said, with a mock tone of concern. "If you think you're too good to practice the basics than we can always go in."  
  
"UGH!" Circe glared at him as she mounted her own broom on raised herself up so that she was tailing him in the air. When she reached his side she muttered, "Let's go Mr. Black."  
  
He proceeded to lead her through a series of dives, loops, and turns through which she excelled. Sirius, who had stopped to admire her as she pulled out from a difficult dive two feet above the ground, couldn't help but be impressed. She really was an amazing flier.  
  
Finally, after another half-hour on the pitch, Sirius decided it was time to go in. Together, they walked silently off the field. Right before they entered the school, Circe stopped him with a hand on his shoulder. "Thanks for doing this Black. It really does mean a lot."  
  
He nodded at her and shrugged. "It's no big deal."  
  
Circe smiled at him and leaned forward intending to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. Now, Sirius had not been expecting this and had turned his face to have one last look at the pitch when their lips met. He felt blood surge through him and was once again surprised at how much she was able to affect him with only the littlest of gestures.  
  
She seemed just as stunned with him at the kiss and did not pull back right away. When she did, she searched his eyes once again, and once again did not find whatever it was she was looking for. Before he could do anything to stop her, before he even knew if he wanted to stop her, she turned around and headed back to Gryffindor tower.  
  
Sirius waited a minute before entering the school, not wanting to have to walk up to the tower with Circe. Christ, he thought. Why did it have to be her, out of all the girls in the school? The one girl he loved was the one girl who didn't want him.

**A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews!! I really hope you like this chapter. Things are begining to heat up and in the next couple chapters you'll really see some development! Keep reading!!**


	11. The Room of Requirement

The Quidditch training sessions continued over the next month with Circe and Sirius meeting on the pitch two days a week and continuing training after practices every few days. Each session was torture for Sirius, the closer he got to Circe the more he wanted her. The more he loved her.  
  
Of course, during this time Circe continued to date Seamus which drove Sirius completely mad. So mad, in fact, that he was seriously considering taking Fiona up on her offer and dating her. After all, very uncharacteristically of Sirius, he had not dated a single girl all year. He had not dated a single girl since he saw Circe on the train.  
  
Sirius had finally decided to take James's advice and back off when it came to Circe. He no longer tried to kiss her or handle her when they practiced. Instead, he always acted as the perfect friend, joking with her constantly. And while it killed him to love her from afar, he did it because it was the only way he would get her to realize he wasn't just after her for the superficial.  
  
The training sessions were perfectly OK in terms of things the students were allowed to do during their spare time. However, Sirius and Circe often got over zealous in their time together and more times than not stayed over curfew outside. This forced them to have to sneak back up to Gryffindor tower, desperately trying to avoid Filch's notice as they couldn't bear another detention.  
  
While they only got close to being caught three times, on the second time things changed forever. Now, whether this change was for the better or worse is something that Sirius contemplated often for the rest of his life.  
  
Circe and Sirius were quietly making their way down a hallway they had never been before - the damn staircases had changed again, causing them to lose their way – when Circe saw the ominous swish of a tail.  
  
"It's Filch's cat!" She whispered urgently.  
  
It took a second for the full importance of what she had just said to penetrate Sirius, who had been dazedly staring at her lips. Thinking quickly he grabbed her by the hand and together they took off down the hallway. And even though he knew that he should be scared that Filch was on his way, all he could think about was Circe. How cute she looked when she got mad, how her lips looked when they formed sentences, how beautiful she was ... how much he wanted her -  
  
Suddenly, almost out of nowhere appeared a wooden door. Circe and Sirius stopped and eyed it warily.  
  
"Have you found me some trouble makers, Mrs. Norris?" Filch was coming closer.  
  
Without another thought, Sirius opened the door and pulled Circe into the room, shutting the door behind them.  
  
She was breathing hard and standing still, starring at the doorway. Sirius looked around the room, still not dropping her hand. This was, by far, the strangest room he had ever come across and the contents along with the girl he was with, caused his heart to slam against his chest. The room was lit entirely by candles with a lone vanilla-raspberry incense burning somewhere off to the side. A large bed was the most significant piece of furniture and was covered in red, satin sheets. Everything about this room screamed romantic and Sirius gulped hard. Wasn't this exactly what he had been imagining just a moment ago?  
  
"Where are we?" Circe breathed, as she disentangled her hand from his and looked around, surveying the room as he had just done. "What room is this?" She moved from his side, towards the bed, looking around with a mixture of curiosity and apprehension.  
  
"I don't know ... I've never been in here before." Sirius realized belatedly that he was sweating. His hand trembled a bit as he ran it through his hair. Odd, he could never remember being this nervous around a girl before. Circe was now close to the bed as she continued her inspection and his heart beat faster, something he had not even thought possible.  
  
"Should we hide out here for a bit? To make sure Filch is gone?" She questioned as she sat on the edge of the bed.  
  
"Sure," he squeaked, then cleared his throat and tried again, "yeah, why not?"  
  
Get a grip! He thought, mentally kicking himself for acting like a virgin who still thought that girls had cooties. Regaining the cool that he was so famous for, Sirius walked across the room and took a seat next to Circe on the bed. It dipped slightly under his weight and she was shifted into him.  
  
An awkward silence took over as she looked around the room, determined to survey everything but him. Sirius stared at his hands.  
  
After a minute had dragged on, Circe valiantly tried at conversation. "So ..." she failed miserably. Another awkward silence reigned.  
  
This time they both tried at conversation at the same time. "How'd you do on that test?" "Everything going good with you?"  
  
Both Circe and Sirius also chose that exact moment to turn and look at each other and their faces were so close together that their noses almost touched. Circe blushed and Sirius gulped. They sat there like that for a moment, when suddenly, acting on impulse, Sirius leaned forward and kissed her.  
  
When their lips touched he felt as if he had a fever, his whole body getting suddenly very warm. She pulled back slightly, eyeing him warily. He leaned forward and kissed her again, this time opening her mouth with his own. She did not protest, in fact, she didn't do anything, just sat there.  
  
Sirius shifted on the bed, causing her to slide closer to him, as he slid his hand into her hair, cupping her head as he deepened the kiss. His other hand clenched into a fist beside him as he was overcome by lust so bad that it nearly caused him to explode. And still, she did nothing.  
  
Finally, Sirius pulled back, starring into her midnight eyes. As he watched her, she fidgeted uneasily underneath his gaze. And since he received no encouragement to continue, he took his hand from her hair and moved so that he sat farther away from her on the bed. "Sorry," he mumbled, feeling like a complete idiot.  
  
She didn't say anything and he leaned back so that he half lay, half sat on the bed; he covered his eyes with his arm.  
  
"Sirius," she began, her voice tinged with an emotion he had never heard from her before.  
  
He cut her off, "Don't bother explaining. I understand, alright?" She had made it clear that she did not want him, wanted nothing more than friendship – and he was currently doing a great job making her not even want that anymore!  
  
"Sirius," she said again, this time more forcibly, he removed his arm from his face and looked at her, shocked to see that she had leaned closer. "Kiss me again."  
  
He was flabbergasted at her request. This was not at all what he had been expecting. Circe had been shooting him down for months, and now she had completely changed her tune. But Sirius didn't bother wasting these precious moments on thoughts about the complexity of the female mind. Instead, he obeyed her. After all, her wish was his command.  
  
Circe leaned over him as he kissed her. He placed his hand on her waist and, with gentle pressure, got her to lie next to him on the bed. Their kisses grew more urgent as Sirius's blood boiled. He removed his lips from her mouth and began to kiss her neck, savoring the taste of her.  
  
"I want you," he whispered in her ear as she trailed her hand up his chest, teasing him with feather light touches. "I want you so bad I can't stand it." Sirius's voice cracked as he fought off the urge to roll over on top of her. He tried to take it slow, desperate to not scare her off.  
  
Circe shifted her head and lay back on the bed, starring up at him with her ocean blue eyes, a slight smile covering her lips. "Yeah?" She teased him, cupping his cheek with her hand as he touched her stomach beneath her shirt.  
  
Sirius knew that if they didn't stop soon he would lose control. He let his need show in his eyes as he fixed his gaze on hers. "Circe ... if you want to stop you are going to have to tell me now. If it's not now, than I don't think I will be able to stop ..." He whispered the words urgently, needing her to know exactly how he felt.  
  
If she had asked to stop, he would have. It would have killed him, but he would have done it. But she didn't. Instead, she leaned up kissed him, whispering against his lips as she did. "I want you too."  
  
Circe and Sirius did not make it back up to the common room that night. And when they entered it the next morning, both looking suspiciously guilty, they answered the questions of their friends by telling the gist of it. Their story was that they had had to hide out in an empty classroom so that they wouldn't get caught by Filch. Nobody asked any more questions as this was an extremely reasonable excuse, and neither Sirius nor Circe spoke of the 'incident' again for a while.

**A/N: Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and sorry for the long span between updates! I've been so busy with school .. gah! I am trying to get as much of this story done before I leave for the summer since I won't be able to update at all from July to the end of August... Well ... once again, thanks to my fabulous reviewers! Means a lot!! **


	12. Merciless Tease

The common room was virtually empty since most of the students were taking advantage of the nice weather and had elected to spend their time outside. Most of the students inside were ones in fifth and seventh year and they were all frantically studying for the upcoming OWLs and NEWTs. But there were a sparse number of students who were just enjoying the empty Gryffindor Tower as a rare event.  
  
Sirius had originally been planning on going to sit by the lake with his girlfriend of the week, Fiona Davis. But as he had been about to leave the common room to meet her he had overheard Circe and James deciding to play a came of Wizards Chess and had turned right back around and sat down with them. In the back of his mind he knew that Fiona would be furious with him, but he couldn't bring himself to pass up an opportunity to admire Circe.  
  
Sirius leaned back on the couch where he sat next to James and across from Circe and smiled as he watched her scowl at the board as she suffered a bitter defeat.  
  
"HA!" James jumped up from his seat and then sat back down. He looked at Circe with smug satisfaction and she glowered back playfully. "I beat you Bloom."  
  
She clapped sarcastically, "I won the first game. It's a tie then."  
  
"Can't have that." James said seriously as he used his wand to repair a piece and set the board back up. "Best two out of three then. Winner of this game is the undisputed champion and all that."  
  
"Here, here!" Sirius said, as he swept his hair off his face with a casual elegance. Circe smiled at him sweetly before turning her attention to her game.  
  
He had been greatly confused with her lately. It had been two weeks since they had slept together and she had not said a thing to him about it. Hadn't even hinted about it, instead, she had gone on as if nothing had happened. They stopped their Quidditch practices and she never hung around him unless other friends were present. He had tried to bring it up once but she had brushed him off. She didn't seem to want to talk about it all, but she didn't seem mad at him either. In fact, she continued to be friendly to him; if not overly friendly at times which had originally caused him to think that they would now start dating. But when he had seen her with Seamus, he realized that was not the case because they were still together. So he had started seeing Fiona.  
  
His dating Fiona had brought about another confusing aspect to his relationship with Circe. She had been angry with him when she had originally found out, but after a day of ignoring him completely things had gone back to 'normal'. He didn't know what to make of anything anymore, and all he knew was that the more time he spent around Circe, the more he wanted to be with her. And it wasn't just sexual; he was convinced that he was in love with her. Absolutely and completely in love with her.  
  
Sirius was brought from his musings by Circe's voice. "Bloody hell!" Circe grimaced as her king was shattered by James's bishop. He laughed as she glared at James.  
  
"Say it with me Bloom, 'James Potter is the undisputed champion.'" She rolled her eyes as James put away the chess board.  
  
"In your dreams Potter." Circe brushed a piece of a pawn off her jeans.  
  
"Don't worry," James said as he stood up, holding his chess board. "Even though you won't say it, I know that you accept me as your superior." Both Circe and Sirius laughed at James as he glared down at them. He paused to let them finish laughing and then said, "Well, I'm off then."  
  
"Off where?" Sirius asked eyeing James suspiciously.  
  
James wrinkled his nose in displeasure, "I promised Wormtail I'd help him with his Transfiguration homework. I'm going to meet him in the library."  
  
"Why not just do it in here?" Sirius asked James, knowing there was something he wasn't telling him.  
  
"Lily's in the library." Circe filled in the blank, an amused expression on her face. Sirius muttered "oh" and James feigned a look of surprise.  
  
"Evans? In the library? On a day like this?" He gestured outside and then smiled widely. "I better get going ... to see Wormtail you know. Catch you two later."  
  
He was gone from the common room within seconds and Sirius began to feel slightly uncomfortable. Without the company of James, he and Circe sat alone in the corner by the window. It was the first time he had been alone with her in two weeks ...  
  
Circe swept her bangs from her eyes, leaning forward in her chair and crossing her legs as she smiled at him. "Hi," She said shyly.  
  
"Hi." Sirius whispered back, his heart beat speeding up. He cursed himself for being so nervous around her all the time. He wished that James was still there to make it more comfortable, but at the same time was ecstatic that he was finally alone with her.  
  
"So ..." Circe said, fingering the table cloth that covered the table in between them. "What do you want to do?"  
  
Sirius lifted an eyebrow. Somehow, he doubted that she would want to do what he wanted to do. He tried to think of an activity they could do that wouldn't give him the opportunity to think about how good it had been ...  
  
An idea entered his head and he spoke without thinking, "Want to go upstairs?" Circe looked up at him completely flustered and she flushed. He mentally kicked himself, hard. That had definitely come out wrong. "Umm ... that's not what I ... I wasn't referring to ... that came out wrong." He finished lamely, blushing, once again asking himself the question, why her?  
  
"Black?" She asked when he didn't say anything. She looked at him apprehensively.  
  
He looked up into her eyes and was jarred by the intensity of her gaze. What was she thinking? He wanted more than anything to know. "What I meant was that we could go upstairs to hang out with Finn and Moony."  
  
Comprehension dawned on her and she smiled slightly. "I was wondering where Ri had gone."  
  
He waited a moment for her to say something else and when she didn't he spoke again. "So, do you want to go?"  
  
"You're sure they're in there?" She asked, blushing slightly. He thought again about being with her and shifted in his seat. He wouldn't have minded at all if Adriana and Remus weren't in the room.  
  
But there was no way she would have agreed to being in a bedroom alone with him. Not after what had happened.  
  
"Where else would they be?"  
  
She seemed to think about this a moment and then looked at him and smiled. "Alright... but if they're not we're coming right back down."  
  
"Deal." Sirius stood up and walked towards the boys' dormitory, pausing at the entrance to wait for Circe who had taken her time. When she reached the entrance he gestured for her to go first. She looked at him skeptically over her shoulder and together they walked in silence until they reached the sixth years' boys' dorm room.  
  
She paused to knock outside the door but Sirius, with a sneaky smile on his face made his way past her and opened the door.  
  
And sure enough, there, lying on Remus's bed was Remus and Adriana. Adriana smiled at them as they entered the room but Remus just stared. Both looked extremely guilty.  
  
"Hey!" Sirius said friendlily as he walked over and took a seat on his own bed. "We thought we'd join you guys in here, hope you don't mind."  
  
Remus shot him a look that said he did indeed mind, but Sirius just smiled back at him. Circe, after the eyeing the room, decided to follow Sirius and took a seat next to him on his bed. When she sat down her leg and arm were pressed against him and a he shivered slightly. He moved his arm so that his hand rested on the bed behind her.  
  
"So ..." Sirius began, trying to break the silence.  
  
"What were you two up to?" Adriana asked, casting a look at Circe. Circe nodded so slightly that it was barely noticeable and Adriana raised an eyebrow. Sirius was once again amazed at the almost telepathic communications the girls seemed capable of.  
  
"We were playing chess." Circe said simply. She did not mention James which Sirius found odd. He stopped himself from reading too much into it. "Then we decided to come and visit you guys."  
  
"Right." Remus said, and cleared his throat. "Great." He shifted slightly and put his arm around Adriana who giggled.  
  
Another silence followed and it was once again Sirius who broke it. "So Finn, what're you doing for the summer?"  
  
Adriana shrugged "Not sure yet. You?"  
  
Sirius started to answer as Circe moved slightly, leaning against his arm that was behind her. She turned her face to look at him and he didn't speak for a second, captivated by her beautiful eyes. But when he realized that both Remus and Adriana were looking at him, both seemingly about to laugh at the oddly flustered Sirius – a sight that few had ever seen as he always managed to keep his cool around women – he cleared his throat and answered her question. "I'm living with the Potter's now, so Prongs and I will probably think of something cool to do."  
  
He had moved out from his parent's house a while back and couldn't wait for summer vacation at James's house. "You two will be up to a lot of mischief, no doubt." Circe smiled at him.  
  
"I feel sorry for Mr. and Mrs. Potter." Remus joked. "Not only do they have to deal with Prongs, but they'll be left to keep you out of trouble too."  
  
Adriana laughed. They all continued to talk about summer vacation and the upcoming exams for a good half-an-hour when James suddenly burst into the room, looking absolutely furious. He flopped angrily onto his bed before noticing that anyone was in the room. He mumbled a quick "hello" and then lay down disgruntled.  
  
"Alright there Prongs?" Remus asked.  
  
"Peachy." James replied.  
  
Adriana and Circe exchanged a look and both smiled at a silent joke that only they knew.  
  
"Everything went well in the library then?" Sirius asked, suppressing a smirk.  
  
James grunted and Circe snickered. James sat up at scowled at her. "What are you laughing at?"  
  
Rather than answering his question, Circe asked one of her own. "Is Lily still down there?"  
  
Comprehension dawned on Remus and he grinned, at Sirius who started to laugh, his arm tightening a bit around Circe's waist. James's scowl deepened. "I wouldn't know."  
  
Everybody laughed and James flopped back down on his bed, muttering insults at them under his breath. Remus whispered something in Adriana's ear and they both stood up. "We'll see you guys at dinner." Remus said taking Adriana's hands as the two left the room.  
  
Sirius turned his attention to Circe. Her cheeks were flushed from laughter and her lips were curved in a cute smile. She noticed him looking at her and turned her face slightly so that their eyes met. "Hi," she mouthed, without any sound coming out.  
  
"Hi," he whispered back. They sat there in an odd silence for a bit. Not quite comfortable because of the rapid beating of his heart, but not exactly uncomfortable either.  
  
Sirius looked away from Circe when he heard James moving. He mumbled something that sounded like "I'm going to find Peter" and left the room, leaving Circe and Sirius all alone.  
  
Reluctant to have another silence take over, Sirius opened his mouth to speak but was stopped when Circe kissed him. His surprise didn't last long and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her so that she half- sat on his lap.  
  
She broke away from his mouth and took in a deep breath as he trailed kisses down the side of her neck, nuzzling the part where her neck joined her shoulder. He pulled his mouth away, and looked into her eyes, trying to figure out what she was thinking. He was incredibly aroused, and amazed at what a short time it had taken.  
  
She closed her eyes and took in another deep breath. "Black ..."  
  
Sirius flinched, knowing that she was going to tell him off. He waited on baited breath for her to finish speaking. When she didn't he pushed her gently away and stood up, walking over to stand close to the window, watching the students below.  
  
"This is weird, isn't it?" Circe asked him and he turned around to look at her. Sirius shrugged and she continued speaking, "We've been friends for a long time and now its like-"  
  
"You kissed me," he reminded her speaking softly, his stomach twisting in knots. He was dreading what she was about to say, but at the same time he wanted to hear her out in case it wasn't just another rejection.  
  
"I know." She sighed and leaned back onto his bed, her legs hanging off over the edge. "I'm not complaining. I like kissing you." Circe seemed upset by her own words.  
  
Sirius mouth dropped and he was sure he looked incredibly stupid. What exactly was she saying? He waited for her to continue.  
  
"It's just so confusing, you know? We've been friends for years and now it seems that every time we're alone we go at it like rabbits." He barked a laugh and looked back out the window. "But then there is Seamus ... and Fiona" she mentioned Fiona's name with a tinge of bitterness marring her voice, but her bringing up Seamus felt like a blow and Sirius blinked several times, trying to get the look of pain from his eyes. "What are we going to do?"  
  
He shrugged even though she couldn't see him. "What do you want to do?" He whispered and held his breath, waiting for an answer. He was past the point of caring if she knew how he felt, all he wanted lately was her and until he got her, nothing was going to change that.  
  
"I dunno." She sat back up on the bed and looked at him, her brow and lips tugged into a frown. "I don't want to leave Seamus, but-"  
  
"But what?" He interrupted, sounding angry. And for the first time in his life, Sirius felt horrible for every girl he had ever strung along or used. He didn't enjoy the feeling and vowed that he would never again treat anybody this way.  
  
"But I like you" Circe breathed the words and she looked like she wanted to cry or scream or both. He ran a hand through his hair.  
  
"OK" was all that he could manage. What else could he have said? There was no point in saying that he loved her, she had to already know that. "Well," he exhaled loudly. "Whatever you decide to do about it, it's up to you. But I'd really appreciate if you figured it out soon." With that said he started walking towards the door but Circe jumped up from the bed and grabbed his arm, stopping him.  
  
Sirius looked over at her and when their eyes met he felt his heart stop for a moment. He realized that it was his curse that he loved her and that for as long as he lived he would never stop. And then Circe leaned up on her tip-toes and kissed him, tugging slightly on his bottom lip. He groaned and once again pulled her close to him, feeling himself get hot at being so close to her.  
  
She pulled her lips away, still letting him hold her and draping her own arms around his neck. "What if ... what if we just sort of ... we could just figure things out as they happen, you know?"  
  
He had no clue what she meant, but nodded any way. She smiled at him and he brought his head down, kissing the corner of her mouth and then kissing her lips. He tried to bring her even closer to him and couldn't think as he felt her run her hand through his hair.  
  
He wanted her so much that he couldn't stand it. And he loved her more than that.

**A/N: Two updates in one sitting! I'm so proud :P ... hope you liked this one!**


	13. Nightmares

Circe never dumped Seamus, much to Sirius's dismay. The more he saw her and him together, the more it felt like a hand was reaching into his chest and twisting his heart painfully. She confused him so much! He didn't know what to make of their 'relationship'. They were definitely not boyfriend and girlfriend, but they most definitely weren't 'just friends' anymore. Sirius and Circe continued their Quidditch practices and after everyone they went up the Room of Requirement where they did things that people who were 'just friends' didn't do. But even without the physical side of their relationship, they became more emotionally involved too. They talked all the time, joking and laughing and becoming better friends with every passing day.  
  
Sirius, for the first time in his life, didn't let his friends in on the status of his love life. They knew nothing about him and Circe knew nothing about how much he loved her. Until Circe made a decision about him he wasn't going to let anyone know. Besides, everyone knew that he was 'dating' Fiona.  
  
But even though he was seeing Fiona, he just couldn't handle the idea that Seamus got to have Circe. It drove him nuts that he didn't know how far they were in their relationship. Every time they parted after their time in the Room of Requirement, all he could think of was what if Circe had taken Seamus in there? It hurt him so much that she wasn't his, and he knew he couldn't take much more of their 'friends with benefits' relationship. His heart was breaking a little more every time he was with her, knowing that they weren't really together.  
  
One Saturday night, when Circe came back to Gryffindor Tower after a date with Seamus, she came over and sat next to Sirius on the couch, chatting comfortably with the Marauders. Adriana, who knew nothing about Sirius's feeling for Circe, asked how the date had gone. Circe briefed a glance at Sirius and then smiled at her best friend, "Fabulous."  
  
The word rung in Sirius's head and he fought off a scowl. The group talked more until Sirius decided he couldn't stand it. He excused himself politely, earning questioning looks from both Circe and James, and then dragged himself up to his dorm room.  
  
Sirius flopped down on his bed, crossing his arms behind his head and thinking things over in his mind. He wished that he could just get over her and continue on with his life as he had always done before. Dating a new girl every few weeks and having fun with life. Before this year he had never lost sleep over a girl. He had never spent countless hours dreaming of one, wishing that he could have her. He cursed Circe for entrapping him so, and knew that he really couldn't take much more of the way things were.  
  
It was that night that Sirius decided to end whatever it was he had with Circe. He couldn't take the heartache anymore. He wasn't going to be some fool who went to her every time she wanted him. He wasn't going to be one of those guys who were whipped by a girl that didn't even care about him. All Circe wanted from him was some fun, and he was no longer going to give it to her.  
  
He worked it all out in his mind. The next day, before breakfast he would tell her that if she wanted to continue being with him she was going to have to break up with Seamus. If she didn't, he was no longer going to be with her.  
  
He went to bed that night with this new resolve ringing through his mind. He couldn't say he was exactly happy with this decision, but he knew it was for the best. He fell asleep that night before any of his friends even left the common room, and he dreamed of her.  
  
A sixth sense woke Sirius from his sleep that night and he lay groggily and half-asleep in his bed when he heard the dorm room door open and then shut quietly. His first thought was that it was James coming back in after sneaking down to the kitchen, but when he failed to hear the stumbling that usually followed (James was not as graceful on land as he was in Quidditch) he instantly became apprehensive. He began to quietly sit up, hidden from the intruder by the curtains that hung around his bed. He stopped suddenly in complete and utter shock when his curtains began to slowly draw back. The intruder slowly stepped into his space and quickly closed the curtains behind her.  
  
"Circe?" Sirius whispered, his heart instantly beginning to beat faster than a speeding car.  
  
His bed dipped slightly under her weight as she sat down next to him. It was too dark to see her face but he could tell she was nervous as she kept crossing and uncrossing her arms. "What are you doing in here?" His voice trembled a bit with nerves. This was the first time she had come up to his room without him suggesting it. And this was the first time she had come into his room at night.  
  
She shrugged and it was moment before she spoke. "I couldn't sleep anymore ..." Sirius knew that she wanted to say more, but when a long moment of silence ensued without her saying anything he shifted towards her and put his arm around her shoulder in an act of comfort. His resolve of only a few hours before had completely vanished from his mind.  
  
Then she did something he had not been expecting at all. Circe burst into tears and placed her head on his shoulder. He didn't know what to do; he had never seen a girl cry before. Sirius swallowed hard and wrapped his other hand around her, not knowing what to do but knowing he needed to comfort her at the same time.  
  
And even with her crying, his heart beat didn't slow down and he began to sweat lightly.  
  
"It's alright," he murmured, praying that nobody would hear them and wake up. "Shh ... everything's OK."  
  
Circe looked up at him and he could only see her eyes, her face hidden by the darkness. They were shining from the tears and resembled the deep blue of an ocean. He loved her beautiful eyes ...  
  
"I had a nightmare," she said, and he could hear the embarrassment in her voice. He smiled slightly and brought his hands up to wipe the tears from her face, caressing her lightly with his thumbs.  
  
"Wanna talk about it?" he whispered soothingly. Sirius could see the outline of her head as she nodded. He leaned back on his pillows, pulling her so that she lay against his side on his bed, her head resting on his shoulder and his arm still around her. He worried belatedly that she could hear his heart as it slammed loudly against his chest.  
  
Another silence. The only sound was the breathing of everyone in the room; Sirius felt that his own breath was coming out too fast. She started to speak and he knew that it was taking a huge effort. "It was terrible. Everybody I cared about was being murdered by men in dark black cloaks." Circe's voice faltered slightly as she relieved her terrifying dream. "There were tattoos on their wrists. Hideous looking skulls. I could see them as they raised there wands. Everyone was screaming and ..." she stopped speaking and drew in a shaky breath. "They were all screaming and two men walked into the room. Flashes of green went off everywhere and everybody fell down. There were bodies ... so many bodies. Their eyes were all still open and it was horrible. I woke up though ... right as one of them turned to me, the man who had walked into the room. I had this feeling though. This feeling that I knew him ... I knew who he was and a terrible shock went through me. He had pointed his wand and somebody yelled my name but it was too late ..." Circe looked up at him. "It was you," she said, shy at having told him her dream. "You tried to save me."  
  
Sirius was at a loss for words. His heart ached for her and he vowed that he would always be there for her. He couldn't imagine himself loving anybody as much as he loved her. He wrapped his other arm around her and because he couldn't think of anything to say he kissed her forehead in a gesture of comfort.  
  
When he pulled back she looked up at him and he knew there was something that she wanted to ask. He waited patiently. "Can I ... I mean ... Would it be OK if I slept in here tonight? I'm afraid to be alone ..."  
  
And even though he knew that he would get no sleep lying there next to her, his heart beating so fast and his body hot with need, he said yes. She snuggled under the covers and curled up against him.  
  
They lay there in silence until, her voice sleepy, Circe whispered "Thank you." Sirius ran his hand through her hair slowly and kissed her forehead.

Contrary to what he had thought, Sirius did manage to sleep very lightly for a little while that night. And when he opened his eyes, glancing at his clock and seeing that it was 6:00 AM, he gently shook Circe awake. Her eyes fluttered as she started to wake up and the lashes brushed her cheeks. When she finally opened her eyes and looked at him Sirius almost forgot what he was going to say as he stared into their blue depths. She smiled slightly at him, obviously still embarrassed about sharing her nightmare with him.  
  
"You better get to your own dorm," Sirius whispered quietly into her ear, wishing that she didn't have to leave. "People will talk," he teased.  
  
Circe sat up slowly and he wished for her to lay back into his arms because he missed having her there. She smiled shyly at him and brushed her bangs from her eyes. "We wouldn't want that. Just think of the rumors."  
  
She started to slide off his bed when she seemed to remember something. She turned her face around and looked at him, leaning forward and kissing him quickly on the cheek. Sirius didn't have anytime to react before she scooted out of his bed and quietly left his dorm.  
  
He sighed loudly when he heard the door close and lay his head back onto his pillow. He wasn't smiling now that she had left. He was far to confused to smile. Since he had stayed up most of the night he was exhausted and as he began to fall asleep his last thoughts, as always, were of Circe. What was he going to do about her now?

**A/N: Hope you liked this chapter ... :)**


	14. How do you know ?

Circe continued to come into his room every few nights, her pretty face stained with tears and her eyes wide and puffy from the horrors she saw in her dreams. And just as Sirius never told his friends that he was sleeping with Circe, he didn't tell them about her late night visits either.  
  
Everything was so wrong when in came to him and Circe. He knew now that he loved her, and she was the only girl he had ever loved. But she wasn't his, even if they did sleep together. He could hope and dream all he wanted, but the truth was that Circe and Seamus were in a pretty serious relationship that didn't look to be letting up any time soon. And even though this was Seamus's last year at Hogwarts, the two already had plans to keep their relationship going all through the summer, even into next year.  
  
Sirius and Fiona kept dating, but it didn't look as if that was going to last much longer. Sirius refused to sleep with her while he was still with Circe, and this was frustrating Fiona immensely. After all, Sirius had the reputation – based on fact – which he slept with every girl he dated.  
  
He just couldn't bring himself to 'cheat' on Circe with Fiona, even while he wondered if Circe and Seamus were sleeping together. He tried not to think about it often, tried to forget that Circe was dating someone else, but sometimes the damn girl made it impossible for him to forget. Sometimes she hurt him so bad he couldn't stand it ...  
  
They were in the Room of Requirement, it was a Wednesday. He rolled off of her as his breathing slowed, and wrapped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her close. Her eyes were closed as she began to drift into a peaceful slumber, and he whispered into her ear, too tired to think, "I love you." She stiffened slightly in his arms but he didn't notice as he fell asleep.  
  
It must have been an hour later when he woke up, Circe was no longer in his arms, but lying on the bed a foot away from him, watching him with a perplexed expression on her face, her eyes unreadable.  
  
Sirius shut his eyes tight when it all came back to him and he remembered what he had said. He contemplated pretending he was still asleep but he knew that wouldn't work, she had already seen him wake up. He sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, bringing it out of his eyes; he sat up in the bed, starring at the wall ahead of him so she wouldn't see his face.  
  
Sirius felt her move around on the bed and he started a bit when he felt her arms slide around his waist and her cheek rest against his back. She had sat up behind him. He frowned slightly as she spoke, not wanting to fall any deeper for her.  
  
"You said that you loved me." She spoke her words with a shyness that he rarely heard from her and he shut his eyes tight. He hadn't meant to say it; it had just felt so right ...  
  
"Yeah," he said wearily, not wanting to have her angry with him again.  
  
She was silent for a while, and the only noise Sirius could hear was his heart beating heavily against his chest. And then her arms tightened around his waist a bit and she whispered to him. "How do you know if you're in love?"  
  
He hadn't been expecting this question and he was speechless. _How did you know if you were in love?_ Love was when your heart beat faster than you ever thought possible and your pulse quickened every time they touched you. It was when you were having the most miserable day of your life and their smile was enough to make you forget your troubles. It was when that person invaded your thoughts at every waking moment, and even crept stealthily into your dreams at night. Love was when your happiness no longer mattered as long as they were happy.  
  
How did you know if you were in love? You just _knew_ ...  
  
When he didn't answer her, Circe began to speak again. "Seamus once told me that he loved me, but I didn't believe him."  
  
Her words brought on pain so excruciating that he though for a second he might cry. He blinked his eyes several times, glad that she couldn't see his face, and tried to keep the pain out of his voice. "Do you believe me?"  
  
She sighed against his back, her breath tickling his skin causing him to shiver. His heart beat quickened, if that was even possible. "I shouldn't."  
  
"But do you?" He asked, desperate to know the answer.  
  
"Yes." She tightened her arms again, turning her face into his back and lightly kissing his shoulder.  
  
There was a trace of bitterness in his voice, "Why believe me when you don't believe him. Don't you have more of a reason to believe your _boyfriend_?" He nearly spat the last word out.  
  
"I don't know." Circe was speaking so quietly that he had to strain his ears to hear her. "I guess because I want to believe you."  
  
Sirius didn't know what to say to that so he didn't say anything. He slid his hand across her arm until he reached hers and twined his fingers through her fingers, squeezing her hand.  
  
The perfect silent lasted only a moment. "How do you know that you love me?" She sounded so self-conscious that all he wanted to do was turn around and kiss her and tell her that she was the most beautiful woman in the world.  
  
He didn't do that. Instead, he shifted uncomfortably, not wanting to have this discussion with her, knowing that if he did he would just leave another piece of his heart behind. He knew that if he bared his soul to her it would become far too scared to survive. He shrugged.  
  
Circe kissed his back again and then rested her forehead against him. Even though he knew that she wished he would answer the question, she didn't push and he was grateful.  
  
They sat there together like that for a long time. To Sirius, no moment in his life had ever been that right and he was content just to be there with her, having her hold him. But every good thing has to end, and it was this knowledge that scared him half to death. He didn't know what he would do if he ever lost her ...

**A/N: Here's your update :P ... even if it is kind of short, it sets the stage for the next chatper which I am half done writing. I am REALLY trying to get as much done but I definately wont be able to do too many updates before I leave (I might get in one more). I will try and write as much of the story as I can while I am away, but I doubt that I will be able to post any of it. Hope that you can wait ... and thanks SO MUCH for your reviews! **


	15. So this is how it feels ?

It was after two in the morning when Sirius finally looked at his watch. He and Fiona were sitting in the common room talking about Quidditch. By far it was the best date they'd had yet and for the first time Sirius realized that he and Fiona could actually become friends.

Overall, Sirius was quite happy with how things were going. After all, he did need the break. Earlier that day, Sirius had been walking quietly down the hallway only to see Circe and Seamus heatedly making out in a dark corner. At that moment he wouldn't have been surprised if they had broken apart, startled by the sound of his heart breaking. He had ditched his afternoon classes and spent the rest of the day grumpily locked in his room. It seemed to him that every time he and Circe finally became close in their relationship his dream of being with her would be shattered as finely as glass.

But he stubbornly refused to think of any of this as Fiona playfully swatted his shoulder and teasingly kissed his lips.

"Why don't we go for a walk?" Fiona asked, lowering her voice seductively as she eyed him hungrily.

"Bit late for a walk, isn't it?" Sirius arched a brow and leaned casually back on the couch, stretching his arms behind his head.

Fiona let out an exaggerated sigh "Come on Sirius, where's your sense of adventure?" She stood up off the couch and gripped his hand, pulling him up too and leading him to the door of the common room.

As they left Sirius, glancing once at the entrance to the girls' dormitories, briefly wondered if Circe was asleep and dreaming, and then mentally kicked himself for caring.

Both Fiona and Sirius made their way through the halls, Fiona leading the way and Sirius not really caring where they went as long as it got Circe off his mind.

A nasty shock hit Sirius as they made their way down a familiar hallway with a familiar door. It was the door to the room where he and Circe slept together.

Inwardly Sirius groaned, wishing she had chosen another spot, any other spot.

He stared in apprehension at the door but Circe didn't seem to notice his unease. "I came down here once before and knew instantly I had to show it to you." Fiona said as she once more grabbed his hand and dragged him towards the door. He tried desperately to think of a reason why he couldn't go in there. Any excuse, really. But his brilliant mind failed him and remained blank.

As Fiona turned the door knob Sirius felt a sick feeling in his gut. He couldn't go into his and Circe's room with another girl. It just didn't feel right.

But when the door opened and the inside was revealed to Sirius another shock hit him. While the door and hallway were exactly the same the room was not. The walls were a mixture of cherry red and flashy gold. There were two couches in a corner of the room and an extremely large bed with a flowing rainbow of blue duvet sat menacingly in the corner. In the corner next to the door was a great marble bar, stalked up with all sorts of alcohol and glasses.

Sirius had been so sure that this was going to the same room, but the only explanation he could think of was that he had mistook the hallway and only imagined that he recognized it, his thoughts still preoccupied with all things Circe.

He only realized that he had been standing motionless in the doorway when he saw Fiona saunter past him towards one of the couches. "It's great, isn't it? It could be, like, our own place or something." Sirius was jolted from his thoughts by Fiona speaking. He looked once more around the room and, closing the door behind him, walked to the couch Fiona was sitting on. "I haven't told anybody about this room before and nobody seems to know about it. It could be our little secret." She smiled at him suggestively and slid closer on the couch.

Sirius didn't say anything back, he only smiled in reply. He was experienced enough to know that Fiona had brought him in here so they could have sex. He was half expecting her to try and jump him at any moment when she surprised him by getting up off the couch. She walked slowly to the bar, and with a sultry look thrown at him over her shoulder, she pulled out a mickey of rum and brought it back to the couch.

"Alcohol?" Sirius raised his eyebrows, only mildly shocked. Fiona, after all, did have a reputation for being a 'bad girl'.

"Live a little Black" she said as she unscrewed the cap off the bottle and took a sip. She passed it to him and he took a sip, enjoying the burning sensation as the rum made its way down his throat.

They sat in silence for a moment until Fiona brought up the Gryffindor Quidditch Team. Instantly Sirius began to feel uncomfortable. Quidditch brought to mind Circe. "You think we'll win the cup again this year?" Fiona slid her arm across the back of the couch as she turned more fully towards him.

"Of course," he replied, taking a larger drink of the rum.

"I supposed you're right, I mean, with James as captain and you and Circe on the team, how could we lose?" She laughed and smiled at him.

Sirius faked a laugh and smile back and took another swig of the alcohol. Her mentioning Circe's name made him miserable. All he could think of was that if he was here with Fiona, what was to stop Circe from being with Seamus? The alcohol warmed his insides and Sirius knew that if he drank enough he'd be able to forget the pain of loving Circe.

"So," Circe whispered, sliding her hand off the couch and onto his leg. "What should we do, all alone in here?"

Sirius raised an eyebrow in response and drained a third of the bottle in his next gulp. He was enjoying the lightheadedness that was beginning to take over and was content to just sit back and let Fiona have her way with him.

"I think," her hand was tracing patterns along his inner thigh now, "that we could have a little bit of fun, don't you?"

He laughed at her attempt at being coy and Fiona took that as an invitation. She leaned forward slowly and smiled at him right before closing her eyes and lowering her lips to kiss him.

Fiona wasn't a good kisser, and as she kissed him Sirius thought of Circe, which although wasn't a new thing for him, frustrated him incredibly. How could she keep him so entrapped? How was it fair that he should be so pathetically in love with the one girl who didn't want him? He began to kiss Fiona back in an attempt to block Circe out of his mind.

Fiona's passion heated up and she began to kiss him as if her life depended on it while Sirius could only muster up enough enthusiasm because of the alcohol. How different he now was then he used to be, he thought briefly before he felt Fiona's hand undo his belt and slide down into his pants.

It wasn't long after that before they made their way to the bed, loosing their clothes in the journey. And when at last they finished Sirius moved away from the body of Fiona, rolling onto his side and frowning. He lay there on the bed, starring at nothing, feeling ashamed of sex for the first time in his life.

* * *

It was lunch break on Monday and Circe was just about to leave stall number three in the bathroom when she heard an all too familiar voice. An all too familiar_ annoying_ voice.

"You will so not believe what happened to me the other night!" Circe wasn't exactly sure what it was, but something in Fiona's voice kept her from leaving the bathroom. Putting the lid down, Circe took a seat on the toilet and made herself as silent as possible, fully prepared now to eavesdrop on the conversation of Sirius's girlfriend.

Circe's fellow Quidditch teammate and Fiona's best friend Angela Hall replied, "What is it? You've been hinting around this all day! It's been driving me nuts! Tell me what happened, now."

"Well, Sirius and I were hanging out last night," Circe felt a clenching in her gut at Fiona's elated voice. She had a horrible feeling about this, and knew that it would be better for if she just made her presence known and left the bathroom. But a morbid curiosity got the better of her and she stayed, biting her bottom lip nervously,

Fiona continued her speech in an excited voice that did not bode well with Circe. "And after a while the two of us decided to go for a walk. One thing led to another and the two of us ended up having sex! It was magical! I'm so sure he loves me now."

Circe let out a gasp of shock that was luckily drowned out by Angela's squeals. A cold feeling spread through her body and a tingling hurt mingled in her gut. Sirius had slept with someone else? She couldn't believe it; he had told Fiona that he loved her?! A voice inside her head tried to convince her that Sirius did love her, Circe, not Fiona. He never said those three words unless he meant it and she knew that he had never said them before.

Or did she know? She couldn't really be sure, could she? After all, maybe he really did consider her just another conquest. Maybe he had only told her he loved her to get her into bed.

Tears stung her eyes but Circe blinked them back, trying to deny that Sirius's betrayal hurt her as much as it did. She wouldn't let him hurt her this way.

She fixed a cool look on her face causing her eyes to look like ice and stood up and opened the door to the stall, walking out and trying to remain aloof to the shocked stares of the two girls.

Fiona glared at her. "What are you doing in here?"

Laughing coldly and trying to ignore the ache in her heart Circe replied as she washed her hands, gaining eye contact with the younger girl's reflection in the mirror. "I would think that'd be obvious, or do you need me to explain it to you?" Fiona glared harder in response. "Oh, and by the by. If you think that Sirius loves you, you're kidding yourself."

Fiona paled slightly, and putting her hands on her hips scowled. "Yah? What would you know?"

_More than you'd think,_ Circe thought to herself. "Only that he sleeps with every girl he dates. You're just another flavor of the week."

With that Circe walked out of the bathroom, not looking back at Fiona's shocked and pretty face. Right before closing the door she heard Fiona mutter "What a bitch" and tried to ignore it unsuccessfully.

She walked rigidly down the hallway, heading towards the Gryffindor Tower when she heard the bell ring. She had Double Potions. Circe was sure she was about to be sick, right there in the hallway. How could anyone expect her to go to Potions where she would have to sit next to Sirius for two hours? How could she face him now that she knew it was all a lie?

The answer was she couldn't.

Circe quickened her pace, determined to get to her dorm before she burst into tears. There was no way she was going to go to class.

"Bloom! Where you headed?" James Potter came around the corner, stopping right in front of her, a sloppy grin on his face.

"Um," Circe racked her brain for an excuse. She couldn't say she was sick, because they had a Quidditch Practice the next night. And she couldn't tell him she was upset because than he would ask why and even if she didn't tell him she'd have to explain it all to her friends and they didn't know the truth. No one knew. "I forgot something. Something I needed. For class."

James smirked and eyed her questioningly, obviously aware that she was lying. "Well, you're going to have to just forget about it because we're almost late for Potions and you know that Professor Smyth will have a fit if you aren't on time." With that James slung his arm across Circe's shoulders and steered her around without giving her a chance at a protest. Together they walked to Potions, James talking about Quidditch while Circe tried desperately to think of a reason why she couldn't go to class. She failed.

They got to class just as the bell rang and James rushed into his seat. Circe hesitated a moment, taking a deep breath as she stood there in the doorway and masking away all the raging emotions that she felt, she walked into the room and took her seat next to Sirius.

In a gesture that - to any one who didn't know about their relationship – looked like something a caring friend would do, Sirius placed his hand on the back of her chair and smiled in greeting. "Hey there Bloom." But when he saw the expression in her eyes his smile died and a look of concern crossed his features. "Are you alright."

"I'm fine," Circe snarled, turning away to ignore him. How dare he try and act as if he cared about her while he was sleeping with Fiona?

Sirius looked extremely hurt and opened his mouth to comment when Professor Smyth began his lecture. Sirius let his arm drop from the back of her seat and turned to stare at the teacher. Circe glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. His arms were crossed and, although he looked like he was paying attention, she knew he wasn't. He looked incredibly wounded and confused and stared blankly ahead of himself.

Circe felt the realization as if it was a bolt of lightning and she was sure that she would cry. Even though he had hurt her terribly she felt sorry for him as he sat there, unsure and upset. And that could only mean one thing. Circe was falling for Sirius Black, the schools most notorious womanizer.

"Now, you may begin and I expect the potion to be done by the end of the class." Professor Smyth's final sentence, spoken louder than the rest to gain the attention of all the students he knew had tuned him out, dragged Circe back to reality. Immediately the classroom was buzzing with noise as everyone began work on their potions. Circe attempted to stand to go get ingredients when she felt Sirius's hand on her arm, stopping her.

"Are you mad with me?" He asked, and her heart broke at the look in his eyes, but she hardened herself against the pain, remembering how Fiona had smugly told her story.

"Yes," she jerked her arm out of his grasp and left him sitting there stunned. She took her time getting the potion ingredients, but when she could delay it no longer she walked back over to her seat and started work on the potion, trying her best to ignore Sirius who was starring at her dumbfounded.

"I give up," he said after five minutes of silent snubbing. "Please, just tell me what it is I did to deserve this."

"I'm trying to work here Black, stop distracting me." She replied coldly.

"No," he said quite loudly, earning the attention of the people occupying the nearest desks. Circe scowled darkly at him. "Come on Circe, this is ridiculous. You at least owe it to me to tell me why you're angry with me."

That pushed her over the edge. "I don't owe you anything Black." She snapped. He blinked his eyes suddenly and Circe briefly wondered if she could make him cry as he had done to her.

"How can you say that?" He whispered, moving his chair closer to her so that they could talk without drawing attention. Circe kept working on the potion and avoided his gaze. "I've racked my mind and I can't think of anything that I have done that would make you so mad."

Circe couldn't hold it back any longer. She turned and looked at him vehemently and as she spoke her tone was sickly sweet, "How was your weekend?"

Sirius paled slightly and she realized with sadistic satisfaction that he knew what she was talking about and the reason she was furious with him. A thousand emotions crossed his face and she knew that she had hurt him. She refused to feel bad; after all, it was he who had hurt her, more deeply than he could ever know.

"Circe," he began to plead but than cleared his throat before speaking again. "You have to let me explain."

"What's there to explain? You've been fucking me, and now you're fucking her. You must think you're the man right now, having two women and duping them both into thinking they're the only one. You make me sick."

Sirius recoiled at her words, but then narrowed his eyes. Sirius Black had never been one to sit calmly while someone attacked him. He could dish it out as well as he got it. "You have a lot of nerve." He turned it around on her.

"Excuse me?" She was shocked at his choice of words. She had nerve? He was the one who told her he loved her and treated her like someone he cared about while he used her. They had been friends!

Sirius whispered the words harshly, but Circe could see in his eyes that he was still hurt from what she had said. "You think you have the right to talk to me like this? You're nothing but a hypocrite. You come to me at night for comfort while you spend the rest of your time sleeping with Malloy! And then you have the nerve to get mad at me for sleeping with my _girlfriend_."

Circe felt as if her insides were being shredded. "How would you know if I was sleeping with Seamus?"

Sirius was taken aback by her question, and than he stared at her, searching her eyes intently, trying to find the answer to his question. "Are you?"

"That's none of your business." The truth was that Circe wasn't sleeping with Seamus. She had never been with anyone other than Sirius and that meant something to her. But she would be damned before she let him know that.

"Than how is it any of your business if I have sex with Fiona?" He was no longer harsh to her. He really wanted to know why she was reacting like this to him. He really wanted to know how she felt about him, about them.

Circe couldn't take it anymore. She could no longer stop the tears as they streamed down her cheeks, salty and warm. She tried to blink them back, keep Sirius from seeing her weakness, but she couldn't. Her heart and head hurt and she knew she had to get out of there. The final straw was when Sirius, a shocked and apologetic look on his face, reached out to brush the tears away. She jerked back as if burned, vowing that he would never touch her again.

"Go to hell," Circe said as she pushed back her chair and stood up. Aware of everyone's eyes on her she hurried out of the room, leaving all of her stuff and never looking back. Once out of the classroom she ran up to the dormitory where she flung herself onto her bed and let the tears flow. And as she lay there on the bed, she thought to herself that she finally knew how it felt to have a broken heart.

**A/N: Finally, I am back from my trip and can update again. Thanks to all my reviewers and I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Only 8 more to go!! **


	16. A Big Mistake

All eyes in the potions classroom were on Sirius after the door slammed behind Circe's. It wasn't until, after a stunned moment of silence, Professor Smyth cleared his throat audibly and sternly told everyone to "Get back to work" that the inquiring glances were lowered. Sirius glanced behind him and caught James's eye. James mouthed the question "What was that all about?" and Sirius, unable to tell James the whole truth and nothing but the truth just shrugged and went back to his work, a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Double potions seemed to last forever and when the class finally ended Sirius rushed up to the Gryffindor Common Room, desperate to talk things out with Circe. And while he felt horrible that she was angry with him, he couldn't help but feel a bit happy. If Circe was this upset than it must mean that she cared about him, more than just a little.

When he stopped at the Portrait of the Fat Lady and attempted to get into the Gryffindor Tower Adriana and Lily caught up with him. He turned to look at them with an annoyed glance but didn't say anything. He'd be damned if he'd let them take up his chance to talk with Circe.

"Black," Adriana nodded to him in response and arched a brow. The three than walked into the room without another word and all headed towards the stair case to the girls dormitory. And while Adriana and Lily began to walk up the stairs Sirius stopped and scowled darkly. Adriana turned, halfway up the stairs, and looked at him, a cocky expression on her face. "Not coming?"

"You bloody well know I can't," Sirius replied scathingly. He realized belatedly that they were his only chance and he softened his mood a bit. "Could you guys at least tell her that I'm here and I need to talk to her?"

Lily - who had never really liked Sirius because she was friends with James and she hated James - spoke up, "And why should we? You seem to be the reason she's mad."

His eyes narrowed and he kept the anger out of his voice carefully, "Could you _please_ just let her know I am down here?"

Lily opened her mouth to speak again when Adriana cut her off. "We'll tell her Black but I doubt she'll have anything to say to you just yet." She didn't say the words to be mean, she was just telling him the truth and Sirius knew that but the words still hurt. He nodded and as they turned and finished their way up the stairs he walked over and took a seat on the couch, in front of the fire.

After a half hour he hear foot steps on the stairs and jerked his head in the direction of the girls' dormitory, his eyes searching for a glimpse of Circe, whom he was sure was coming down the stairs. He stared for a moment before someone finally came into view.

Adriana walked alone down the stairs and when she reached the bottom and caught his eye she shot him a pitying look. He turned his gaze back to the fireplace as she made her way over and took the seat next to him on the couch. "So," she said, stretching her arms out in front of her.

"Is she alright?" Sirius asked quietly, for once not caring if everyone found out about them, just so long as things worked out.

Adriana sighed in response, and after a moments hesitation which Sirius assumed was used to find the right words she spoke. "Circe is pretty angry with you. I told her that you wanted to talk and she … well, she doesn't want to talk to you."

Sirius felt a ripping feeling deep in his chest where his heart used to be before Circe had broken it to pieces, but tried to ignore it. He took a deep breath and turned his head to face Adriana, "Did she tell you why she's mad at me?"

"No, she just called you a bunch of names. I figure if she had wanted to enlighten Lily and I, she would have." Despite her words Sirius could tell that Adriana was dying to know the reason, so he decided to accommodate her.

"She's mad at me because I slept with Fiona." It was the simplest explanation and Sirius didn't want to go over the entire events of the last year so it would have to suffice.

Adriana slapped her knee. "I knew it!" Sirius looked at her, a confused expression clouding his features and Adriana explained. "Well, I didn't know about you and Fiona – which by the way is disgusting – but I _knew_ something was going on between you two! I just didn't know what."

"And I'm not going to tell you what." Sirius replied with a self-deprecating smile. So, he and Circe hadn't been as good at hiding what was going on as they had thought. But of course that came as no surprise to him; their friends were all quite smart.

Adriana raised an eyebrow and leaned back on the couch, shifting so that she faced him more fully. "Fine. I can accept that."

"Good," Sirius laughed at the expression on her face. He had no doubt that Adriana was going to run and harass Remus for information about this as soon as they finished talking.

"Can I just ask you one thing?" Adriana asked this timidly and Sirius felt a bit apprehensive at first but nodded anyway. "It makes sense to me that she would be jealous about Fiona, but why would she have gotten so mad? I've never seen her so upset before."

Sirius stared. "I don't get it either. I mean, she has no right to get so mad at me when she's doing the exact same thing."

"What do you mean?" Adriana asked, confused.

"I mean that she expects me to fawn all over her and play the saint while she goes and screws Seamus Malloy. It's disgusting and if she-"

"I don't know where you get your information Black, but she hasn't slept with Seamus." Adriana spoke soberly and Sirius instantly froze.

"She said she was," he said, his voice quiet as he began to retreat into thought.

Adriana was Circe's best friend, and if she said that Circe wasn't sleeping with Seamus than he believed her. After all, Adriana and Lily knew all about Circe's relationship with Seamus, Circe would have told them if she had had sex with him.

But on the flip side another part of his mind kept telling him that the girls didn't know that he and Circe were sleeping together, so obviously they didn't know everything.

He wasn't completely sure, but it seemed that Adriana could read his thoughts and he was startled as he felt her hand on his arm. "Trust me Black, if she had ever even considered having sex with Malloy she would have told us."

Sirius opened his mouth to reply when he was interrupted by the sound of the Common Room Door opening. James, Remus, and Peter all bounded in and walked over to where Sirius and Adriana were sitting.

"You missed class." James said with a smirk, although it wasn't clear whether he was talking to Sirius, Adriana, or both.

"It was a crisis." Adriana said, smiling up at Remus as he took a seat next to her, sliding his arm across the back of the couch and around her.

"A crisis that involves my girlfriend and the schools worst ladies man alone in a room together?" Remus said playfully.

"Or could it be a crisis that involves Circe Bloom?" James asked, staring at Sirius in the eyes, and the look James was giving him told Sirius that he knew exactly what the crisis was about.

Everyone sat there in silence, all eyes on Sirius as he shifted uncomfortably in his seat. After a moment he stood up and mumbled a quick goodbye saying that he was going for a walk. When he reached the door he heard Remus say something inaudible and Adriana reply, "I think we should just let him be alone."

* * *

After an hour wandering around the grounds Sirius finally settled on a spot where he could be alone and thing and for four hours he sat under the tree by the lake, his hands wrapped around his knees as he stared out at the water, turning the events of the last year over and over in his mind. It was still light out, even though it was almost eight, but the summer months made daylight last longer. Year six was almost over which meant only one thing to Sirius, he had spent the last year pining after a girl who tortured him with her harshness. What a waste of his second to last year of school, he thought.

He was startled suddenly from his thoughts at the sound of a voice. "Thought you could use some company," Adriana said as she sat next to him.

"Did you, and why would you think that?" Sirius said, trying to keep the bitterness that his thoughts had left him with out of his voice.

Adriana shrugged and after a moments silence spoke. "I'm not going to say that I know how you're feeling, because I don't. What I am going to say is that, even though she's acting horribly, Circe does really care about you. She doesn't have to say it, her actions speak for themselves."

Sirius nodded, grateful for her words, but still wishing he could be alone. He had already realized that Circe cared about him, but he was no longer sure that that was enough to fix everything between them. Some things just weren't supposed to happen and he was beginning to think that he and Circe were one of those things.

"But I didn't come down here to tell you that. I came because I had to tell you something important, something that I know you can do something about because I know that you really care about Circe. She's about to make a really big mistake-"

"What kind of mistake?" Sirius cut Adriana off urgently.

Adriana sighed. "Just be patient will you? This is really hard for me because on the one hand I'm betraying one of my best friend's trust, but on the other hand you're my friend too and I really think you should know about this."

"If it's this important you should just tell me Finn," Sirius said, now feeling nervous about what he was about to hear. What could Circe be planning?

"She's going to sleep with Malloy. Tonight." Sirius felt the words like a blow to his stomach and stared at Adriana in shock. "And she's only doing it to get back at you, which is a big mistake."

"Why are you telling me this?" Sirius ran a hand through his hair as he spoke, turning his head to once again look out on the lake.

Adriana was shocked and she grabbed his arm, forcing him to turn and look at her. "Because you have to stop her!"

"How do you expect me to do that when nothing I say matters to her?" Sirius replied bitterly, jerking his arm away but still looking at Adriana.

She stared at him in disbelief and an annoyed look crossed her face. "Are you thick, Black? Obviously what you do matters to her or she wouldn't be doing this in the first place! Can't you see that she cares about you? And I won't pretend to know what's gone on with the two of you in the last year because I don't, but I know that something happened and that something is important. Are you just going to throw all that away?"

Sirius stood up, angry. He was angry at Adriana for acting as if she had a clue, and he was angry at Circe for jerking him along like a puppet on a string for the last year. "No, you don't know what went on over the last year, because if you did than you would know that there is nothing to throw away. I've made what I feel clear to Circe, but she just doesn't care. And I'll be damned if I let myself be strung along any longer." He turned away from the staggered look on Adriana's face and walked swiftly back to the school, not stopping his stride until he was in Gryffindor tower and lying back sulkily on his own bed. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop himself from thinking over what Adriana had said.

* * *

Two o'clock that morning Sirius finally gave in and admitted to himself that he couldn't sleep. He had tossed and turned in his bed for hours, his thoughts constantly veering to images of Circe and Seamus. With a groan he got up out of his bed and walked over to the dresser where he quietly grabbed a piece of parchment and than sat back down.

"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good," Sirius whispered quietly as images began to appear on the Marauders' Map. He studied it quietly, listening to the sounds of his friends as the slept, reassuring himself that they were all still asleep. When he finally found what he had been looking for he breathed a sigh of relief. The little dot that marked Circe Bloom was still in her dormitory, and the dot remained still. He began to scan the rest of the map.

Sirius felt a stab of anxiety when he saw another small dot on the map, moving swiftly down a staircase and into the corridors. Seamus Malloy was on the move. Sirius tried to rationalize this, tried to think of a reason that Seamus would be out of his dorm so late at night when his eyes were drawn back to Circe's dot. It was moving now and Sirius didn't waste any time as he leapt out of his bed and ran down the stairs.

He reached the bottom steps just as Circe was at the door to the common room. She must have sensed his presence because she turned around and stared at him, shocked.

"Don't do it," he said, an intent look in his eyes as he locked gazes with her.

Circe stiffened but did not move. "I don't know what you're talking about," the words were meant to sound aloof but they came out in a shaky whisper. Sirius walked forward until he was standing just in front of her.

"Circe … just … please don't do it." He pleaded with her, feeling sick at the thought that she was about to be with someone else.

Her features softened and they stared at each other in silence for a moment. The moment died too soon and Circe suddenly looked away. "This isn't any of your business Black."

Sirius felt as if he had been punched, but he didn't say anything, only stared at her. Circe, who had raised her hand back up to the door knob, stopped moving and looked back at him, obviously waiting for him to try to stop her again. He didn't.

Sirius took a step back, without another word and just watched her as she stood still.

Circe swallowed hard, looking as if tears were about to fall from her eyes at any second, and than opened the door and walked out, closing it quietly behind her.

He ran a hand through his hair, blinking back the tears which had become all to familiar to him. He was left standing there, alone in the common room, knowing that something catastrophic was about to happen and that nothing between him and Circe would ever be the same again. Left with the knowledge that he had just lost her …

**A/N: This note is for those of you reading Broken. I haven't updated that story yet because there are some major spoilers for this story in that one and I want this story caught up to the other one before I update. And thank you to everyone who reviewed!!**


	17. The Last Free Day

Circe had left the common room that night, Sirius's words still ringing in her head. Did he really care that much about her? He had told her before that he loved her and she had believed him, but if he really did would he have slept with Fiona. Part of her mind was telling Circe that she should forget about Sirius, another was telling her that he really did love her. Circe was beyond confused.

When she finally reached the spot where she and Seamus had agreed to meet he wasn't there. Circe stood there, leaned against the wall nervously. She couldn't help but think that what she was about to do was wrong. She didn't want to have sex with Seamus, and deep down she knew that the only reason she was doing it was to get back at Sirius.

Seamus was a few minutes late showing up, and when he did he kissed her. She smiled up at him, but it didn't reach her eyes and he instantly knew something was wrong.

"Everything ok Circe?" He stared at her apprehensively and Circe couldn't help but think about all the times Sirius had comforted her when she had her nightmares. He didn't stare at her confused, he held her, made her feel loved.

"I can't do this," Circe whispered. It was a moment before what she was saying dawned on Seamus and Circe could tell that he was disappointed. She could also see annoyance in his countenance and knew that if she went through with it there would be no turning back and she would regret it. Without another word – not wanting to deal with the confrontation she knew was coming – Circe turned on her heel and left, leaving Seamus standing alone in the hallway, confused.

They didn't talk about what had happened that night, even though Circe knew Seamus wanted too. Two weeks went by where Circe avoided Sirius. She wasn't avoiding him because she didn't want to talk to him, only because she had to sort things out in her own mind before she made everything worse. She cared about Sirius, she cared about him a lot and she was finally beginning to realize it.

It was there last free day before leaving Hogwarts when everything became clear as crystal for Circe. She knew exactly what she was going to do to make everything right. Circe got up in search for Sirius; she desperately needed to talk to him.

* * *

Sirius was devastated. He cut classes the day after his confrontation with Circe and spent the whole day in his dorm, starring at the ceiling and feeling the pain of a broken heart. It felt as though she had ripped his heart from his chest. He couldn't believe it was finally over with her. James, Remus and Peter tried to cheer him up but they couldn't. When he finally left his common room he avoided her at all costs, which wasn't hard because she was using the same strategy with him. He went through his exams and right before the school year ended he broke up with Fiona.

When the day finally came for him to leave Hogwarts at the end of his sixth year he would be relieved. Hopefully, with two months spent away from Circe he would be able to get over her. Hopefully he would be able to forget her …

It was the last free day before school ended and the Marauders were frantically trying to pack. The boys were all having fun as they stuffed and crammed things into their trunks, joking around and reminiscing about the years gone by, and making plans for their next and final year. After close to a half hour of packing the door opened and Adriana and Circe walked in. Sirius mood instantly darkened. He didn't say "hi" as they took a seat on Remus's bed, Circe desperately trying to catch his eye. She gave up for a moment and Sirius went on ignoring her, feeling sick to his stomach with the pain of it all.

After about ten minutes Adriana spoke, shooting a haughty look at Remus. "If only you had listened and packed before, like we had tried to tell you." Sirius barked a laugh; he had always liked Adriana and was glad that her and Remus were finally together.

James joined in on the banter as he finally opted out for the magical solution and began to magically fold his clothes and place them in his trunk with a flick of his wand. "Always the haughty one, aren't you?" Sirius heard Circe laugh at James and the sound felt like a physical blow. He couldn't take it, being in the same room with her. As Remus began to magically pack too Sirius thought of an excuse.

He placed his hands on his hips and made a show of looking around the room, avoiding the direction that Circe was in at all costs. "Bloody hell! Where's my pocket knife?"

"Couldn't tell you mate," James answered without sparring him a glance.

"I'm going to go check the common room," Sirius said, leaving the room hastily. Once out the door he stopped for a moment to breathe and then rushed down to the common room, stuffing his hands into his pockets where he felt the cold metal of the magic knife. When he finally reached the common room he noticed it was virtually empty, aside from one student who had fallen asleep on the window seat. Everyone was outside enjoying their last day as Sirius sullenly walked over to a couch and took a seat.

Before he had even gotten comfortable Sirius was surprised by the shock of James hitting him in the back of the head. He glared at James but didn't say anything as his best friend took a seat across from him, Peter stopping to stand off to the side.

"You stupid prat." James said, getting right to the point.

"Sod off Prongs." Sirius replied, knowing exactly what his best mate was about to say and not wanting to hear any of it.

"Obviously Bloom desperately wants to talk to you, although I don't see why she would-"

"Why do you automatically take her side? She's the one who-"

"- When you treat her so horribly -"

"- Strung me around like a bloody puppet."

"- And won't even give her a chance to explain herself."

Both boys stopped talking when they had finished, and belatedly realized that neither one had been listening to the other. They stared at each other for a moment before James spoke again. "Look Padfoot, I'm only saying this for your own good. Now, I don't know everything that went on between you and Bloom this year, but I know you and I know that you've fallen harder for her than I have ever seen you fall before. And she doesn't deserve the way you've been treating her. Besides, I-" James stopped talking and stared at the staircase behind Sirius. A feeling of dread instantly overcame Sirius and he turned his head slowly around only to see Circe standing in the stairway, staring at him accusingly.

James and Peter instantly made excuses and rushed out of the room while Sirius sat still in shock. "What do you want?"

"James is right. I don't deserve the way you've been treating me! And I never strung you along." Circe said, glaring as she walked over and took the seat that James had vacated.

Sirius barked a laugh despite the fact that he didn't find this funny. "Than what the hell would you call what you did?"

"I didn't do anything!" Circe snapped back.

"You slept with me! You led me on constantly."

"You knew I had a boyfriend, Black."

"Yeah, I did. But did he know you had me?"

Circe recoiled almost as if he had hit her. "That's not fair." Sirius barked a laugh at her ludicrous comment. Life wasn't fair.

"Did you even know that you had me?" He whispered harshly. "I fell over backwards for you this year, and a lot of good it did me-"

"I never asked you too!" Circe looked as if she wished to hit him, and Sirius almost wished she would; he was desperate for a reason to hate her.

"No, you didn't ask me. You only took everything you wanted and didn't give a damn about the effect it had on anybody else." Sirius didn't even give Circe a chance to answer; he just walked as fast as he could out of the room, not even sparing her a second glance.

* * *

Circe stared after him as he stormed out of the common room, feeling tears prickle her eyes. She blinked them back as she slowly made her way up to her empty dorm room. How could he have said those hurtful things to her? _Easily_ she thought. What he said was true and he had been right, it wasn't fair. She had strung him along, but in her defense it was only because she was afraid to let him go. She cared about him a lot, but his reputation had kept her from trusting him completely. And now it was too late.

But if he still loved her …

Circe wiped the tears off her face with a new resolve. She was going to make things right with Sirius if it was the last thing she did. And the first thing she had to do was to break up with Seamus.

**A/N: Sorry for another bad-ish chapter, but I just needed to connect some ideas together. Only around 7 chapters left and then this baby is finished. And for those of you reading Broken I should be updating it soon now that both stories are caught up. Thanks to my reviewers!!**


	18. Love Is Not Just A Four Letter Word

Seventh Year, the train ride to Hogwarts. Sirius marveled as this information circulated over and over in his head. This was the last year of all he had ever truly known in life, and he wasn't all that sure how he felt about it. This final year signified the end of the Marauder Era and while he had griped about this school for the last six years, he was definitely going to miss it.

As he walked towards the Marauder's usual compartment with James and Peter the last six years played themselves out through his head. When his memories of Circe surfaced Sirius tried in vain to push them back down, just as he had been doing the entire summer. He wasn't ready to deal with her and the pain the thought of her brought him. He groaned as he thought about having to face her, and only wished that it wouldn't be for a while.

Sirius had even – albeit briefly – considered giving up his place on the Quidditch team, but when he voiced that decision to James received a glare so bad he didn't even have to wait for the lecture before deciding against it.

When they finally reached the compartment Sirius slid open the door.

"Moony! Been looking everywhere for you!" Sirius exclaimed as he finished opening the door to the compartment and took a seat.

"Smart man," said James as he took the seat nearest to the door while looking up and down the hallway in search of someone (probably Lily). "Thought you'd come and save us a seat than?" When Peter shut the door James glared at him. When Wormtail apologized, Sirius laughed loudly.

Sirius couldn't resist a jab at James, especially one about Lily. "Seriously Prongs, could you get any more desperate? Starring down the corridor for a glimpse at your dear flower-" A quick jab and a sharp pain cut Sirius off effectively when James hit him in the stomach, glaring at him all the while which just made Sirius want to laugh even more.

Playfully smacking James back, Sirius started a mock fight between himself as his best friend as Remus and Peter sat back watching. The compartment was filled with the sounds of playful punches and words like "prat", "sod" and "git" as Sirius and James began to include words into their attack. Sirius was about to say something utterly clever when they were interrupted by the opening of the compartment door.

Before Sirius even looked up he recognized who was coming in and his stomach hit the floor. When he finally lifted his eyes Sirius knew that he was staring at the four girls in the doorway with an expression that he was convinced was almost as stupid as James'.

The girls, Circe, Adriana, Lily, and Kelsey, all made their way into the compartment and while Adriana took the seat next to Remus, Kelsey, timidly sat down next to Peter, looking nervous as she smiled shyly at everyone.

The only two left without a seat were Lily and Circe. Sirius could feel Circe's gaze on him but he refused to get eye contact with her. So much for ignoring her completely, Sirius thought as he turned to stare out the window, not really seeing anything.

He felt everyone's eyes on him, and his suspicions were confirmed when he saw their reflections in the window. He knew he looked stubborn and stupid but at that moment he just didn't care. Circe's voice, a sound he hadn't heard in two months, startled him as she muttered "Bullocks!" and walked over, stopping when she stood directly in front of him.

"Mind scooting down a bit Potter?" Not even waiting for an answer Circe took a seat between him and Prongs, annoying Sirius immensely. Who the hell did she think she was?

James began to laugh, shooting a smirk at Sirius and at that moment Sirius really wanted to strangle him. Could no one else in this damn compartment see how awkward this was for him?

Sirius was about to say something, although he wasn't quite sure what he meant to say when Lily interrupted him. "They made _you_ Head Boy?!" Lily exclaimed, blushing at how rude she was being. James frowned and looked disappointed as Remus seemed to have to struggle so that he wouldn't laugh. To Moony's credit, he didn't utter a sound.

"So it would seem," James said coolly, earning a shocked look from everyone in the compartment. James had never been 'cool' to Lily, and Sirius was floored.

Throughout his summer staying at the Potter's house Sirius had noticed a definite change in James. James had matured quite a bit, and had stopped being such a jerk to everyone and anyone. He was no longer cruel to anyone (with the obvious exception of Snape and his best friends to whom he was allowed to act like a prat towards). Sirius couldn't help but wonder if James was finally over Lily. He doubted that that was the case, but the idea gave him hope that he would one day be over Circe.

When the train started moving with a jerk Lily was sent soaring into James' lap which brought forth laughter from Adriana and a snicker from both Peter and Remus. Sirius wanted to laugh, but at that moment, seated next to Circe with his heart beating furiously in his chest and his stomach scrapping the floor, he couldn't.

Lily blushed furiously, as did James, and she slid off his lap, sitting next to him. Both Head Boy and Head Girl stared at the floor, looking awkward and nervous.

The train finally got into its usual groove and jerked no more. As things settled down Peter, Kelsey, and Lily all began to speak. Sirius continued to ignore Circe to the best of his ability, but it was proving to be harder than he had anticipated.

"Black?" Circe whispered her voice uncertain, as she stared at the side of his face. He stiffened in his seat and did not respond. "I know you can hear me … could you just … could we just talk for a second? Please?" Her voice tore at his insides and Sirius had struggle with himself to not turn to her and smile. The last two months as well as all the hurt she had caused him obviously meant nothing to his broken and bruised heart as he knew then that he still loved her.

The knowledge that he had learned nothing from all the pain was the last straw. He jumped up out of his seat, glad to no longer have the pressure of her side against his, and let himself explode. "Sod off will you? Just leave me the bloody hell alone!" Ignoring the shocked looks and silence of everyone else in the compartment he turned abruptly and got out of there as fast as he could. Sirius paused for a second in the hallway, trying to decide which way to go, before deciding on going left. Left seemed like a good direction to him then.

He hadn't got ten feet down the corridor when he heard Circe's voice again, calling out his name as she rushed to catch up to him. He felt his features harden and his step faltered but Sirius began to walk faster.Circe grabbed his arm to keep him from walking any farther.

"What the hell do you want Bloom?" He asked, angry with her.

Sirius saw the shine of tears in her eyes as she blinked several times to hold them back. "I just wanted to talk to you-"

Sirius rudely cut her off and ripped his arm from her grip. "I have nothing nice to say to you." He began to walk away.

"Sirius, would you just listen for a second?" Sirius stopped stiff, but did not turn around. When she didn't speak he turned his head slightly so that he could see her over his shoulder and growled his words out, "Say what you've got to say and hurry it up. I don't want to have anything to do with you."

His words hurt her and he knew it. He stiffened even more at the sight of her eyes wet with the tears she refused to let fall. "I broke up with Seamus." Her whispered words just fueled his anger and his face flushed while his fists clenched. He was furious with her and heartbroken at the same time. How could Circe think that nothing had changed after two months?

"I couldn't care less whether you and Malloy are together or not." Sirius said as he began to walk away. He muttered quietly to himself words that he wasn't sure he would ever believe, "And I couldn't care less about you."

Circe's next words were a harsh whisper; he could hear tears clogging her throat. "But you said you loved me." Sirius clenched his fists even harder and his knuckles went white and he stopped walking. She had played her final card and it had stopped him dead in his tracks.

Sirius turned around to see tears streaming down her face, making her eyes shine. He swallowed hard and fought to keep his voice down, not wanting to draw the attention of other students. "I've said a lot of things."

His words brought forth Circe's anger and she walked forward until she stood directly in front of him. He didn't move as she jabbed her finger into his chest to emphasize each word she spat at him. "How dare you? I know that you meant it when you said you loved me, and I know that I hurt you, but you know what Black? You hurt me too. I worshipped you and Lupin and Potter for years and the minute I gave up on you had to have what you couldn't get. And now that you can have me you don't want me any more. You're pathetic."

"You played me Circe!" He glared at her as her words hit close to home. He was livid that she had managed to turn everything around on him again. She was the one who should feel guilty, not him. She had been horrible to him for a year and here she stood making him feel like a total jerk. It wasn't right. "You played me the same time you played Malloy. I hope you enjoyed yourself-"

She cut him off. "I never played you!"

"You let me think-"

"Think what? Think that you meant something to me? Because you did Black. You still do. I was confused! I didn't know what to think about you. I had no idea why you were going after me and between you and Seamus I had no idea what to do. I'm not used to being the girl people chase, Black. And now that I am trying to make it right and give you a chance you don't want me anymore. Why do you only want me when you can't have me?"

Sirius froze for a moment, allowing her words to register with him. She was wrong, very wrong, but he wasn't sure yet if he wanted her to know that. Of course he still wanted her, still loved her. He was now convinced that he always would, but that wasn't the point. The point was that he had bared his soul to her, the first girl he had ever loved, and she had stomped all over it for the last year.

He wasn't sure if he could get over that just yet. He didn't know if he could forgive her.

Circe didn't speak either while he stared at her, the tears still pouring down her face. His heart twisted because she was crying but his mind berated him for being a fool. For all his experience with women, Sirius didn't have any knowledge of women that would help him now.

"Speak." Circe breathed the word, dragging Sirius from his trance. "Say something. Please."

Sirius didn't speak, he couldn't. He didn't know what to say. So instead of speaking he did the only thing he really knew how to do when talking with girls. Sirius leaned forward and kissed Circe.

**A/N: More to come soon, at least I hope. I am really going to try to update more frequently as this story is almost done. Hope you liked this chapter, and please review. I like reviews … :)**


	19. When Everything Seems Just Too Good To B...

This was going to be a very promising year. Circe and Sirius had begun dating, Adriana and Remus were soon to be approaching their first year as a couple, and James and Lily were soon to be going on their first date after a six year courtship. Everything seemed to be going well for the Marauders. But nothing that good lasts for long.

The night that everything began to unravel was the night of a full moon. Sirius, James, Peter and Remus had been itching to gallivant about the school grounds in their animal forms for months, as none of them had been able to do so for the whole summer. In their high opinions, two months had been far too long to wait for an adventure. So, just as they had done every full moon for the last two years, they arranged to meet, already transformed, in the Shrieking Shack.

From there they moved on to the Dark Forest, adrenaline pumping through Sirius' veins as he, Moony, Prongs, and Wormtail made their way to the Dark Forest. They had explored as much of it as they could in their years as Animagus and had narrowly escaped being seriously injured on more than one occasion. Overall it was always a grand adventure.

But there was something in the air that night that made Sirius nervous. As Padfoot he was able to pick up on things that he normally wouldn't notice in his human form. Remus seemed to pick up on it too as suddenly, as they scampered along the path, he stopped and sniffed, the hair on his back standing up with a new tension. And that was when the world stopped turning.

Not for the first time since they had started this tradition - but certainly the most significant – Remus got away from them. He took of at a run, going off the path, and after several shocking seconds that proved to be their downfall, the remaining three Marauders took off after him. Remus had traveled faster than they did; knowing where he was headed and given the advantage of a head start, but Sirius was not going to lose sight of him.

And that's when they heard it, a loud piercing scream that made all their blood run cold. If it weren't for the sick sense of recognition of a voice he had heard before Sirius would have thought that Remus was attacking one of the creatures of the forest. If only they had been so lucky. The scream sounded again just as Sirius knocked Remus away from his prey, taking out his midsection and dragging him to the ground.

James, tall and imposing, positioned himself so that he stood in between Remus and the crumpled from of Adriana Finn. Sirius knew that she was badly injured, he could smell the blood both on her and Remus, but he wished with all his heart that she had not been bitten. He didn't have time to consider why she was in the Dark Forest at this time of night; all he knew was that he had to keep Remus occupied. The two scraped and scrambled over the ground, snarling at each other, Remus desperate with a vicious blood lust, and Sirius struck dumb for the first time with the stupidity of their actions. Adriana could be killed.

The shock from the direction of his thoughts paralyzed him for a second, but a second was all it took for Remus' long claws to slash out and tear him. His dog form whined as searing pain clouded his senses, five long gashes ripping right across his chest, fortunately they were not deep but they oozed blood. Prongs moved forward from his post, hitting Remus with his antlers as they cornered him.

A loud squeal came from Wormtail, drawing Sirius' attention away from Remus. He looked in the direction that Wormtail was scampering and realized that Adriana was gone. He prayed that she had managed to get back to the school.

* * *

They managed to calm Remus down after an hour or so, and then lead him back to the Shrieking Shack with only a few difficulties. By the time the moon went down and the sun rose, Sirius had stopped bleeding, but his side still ached with a burning ache that almost made him pass out. When they had reached the school grounds they had seen Adriana, crumpled up on the school grounds, looking like death. Peter was sent to rush her into the Hospital Wing, and then go to class so that no one would notice anything suspicious. Not that suspicion really mattered at this point.

Sirius racked his brain over and over, trying to ignore the pain in his side, and tried to figure out what the hell Adriana had been doing in the Dark Forest. He couldn't figure it out as he sat on a stool, unconsciously clutching his side. James and he were waiting for Remus to wake up, charged with the horrible duty of informing Remus what had happened that night.

When Remus came too with a groan, moving slightly in the dim light of the Shrieking Shack Sirius noticed that his good friend fared no better than he or James. Remus was covered in bruises from their fight the night before. When Remus' eyes focused on his two friends, Sirius swallowed hard at the dreadful recognition in Moony's expression. Remus knew something horrible had happened, and now they had to tell him.

Suddenly Remus leaned over and vomited all over the floor, and Sirius pitied his friend, knowing desperately that it shouldn't be Remus, the best of them all, to have to go through this. Not wanting to embarrass Remus, James cleaned up the mess by pointing his wand and muttering solemnly "Scourgify". After giving Remus another moment to clear his head, James asked soberly, "Alright there Moony?"

Remus shook his head in response and then stood, stumbling a bit as he made the effort. "What happened last night?" he said in a hoarse voice.

Sirius looked to James, knowing that they had to tell Remus, but needing to gather courage from his best friend to do so.

"Are you guys ok? I didn't bite anybody? What happened?" Remus' voice was tinged with desperation.

Sirius responded first, unwilling to let Remus go on in the dark any longer, but not wanting to cause Remus to panic. Panic would solve nothing. "You scratched me a bit, but it's nothing" Sirius said, unconsciously touching a hand to his chest where the pain throbbed. Remus looked like he might just vomit again.

James, looking devastated and grim, took a deep breath, and spoke his next words in a rush. "But there is something else."

"What is it?" Remus said, his voice trembling. "Was it … did I hurt Wormtail?"

"No" Sirius said, staring at the floor, not wanting to look Remus in the eye. They couldn't drag out the truth any longer, they had to tell him, but Sirius – for all his supposed bravery – couldn't bring himself to do it.

James dragged in another deep breath. "It was Finn …"

Remus' eyes widened in shock and a stunned moment of silence followed. "That's impossible," Remus breathed, staring stonily at them.

Sirius finally looked at him, meeting his eye for the first time since last night. "She was out in the dark forest-"

"What the hell was she doing there?" Remus interrupted vehemently.

James shrugged in answer; they had been trying to figure that out themselves for several hours and neither boy could come up with anything. Sirius just continued wanting to tell Remus what happened. "Well, you got away from us for a second and when we caught up with you, you had her cornered."

Remus sunk to his knees on the floor, almost as if he was going to pass out.

"You didn't bite her, we're sure of that." James reassured him, walking over and sitting on the floor with him.

Remus looked from face to face, knowing that there was more. Expecting the truth.

"But there was …" Sirius's voice broke for a second and he cleared his throat.This should never have happened. If only they had been more responsible."There was a lot of blood on her robes. We think you must have scratched her or something."

Remus shut his eyes tight and breathed deep. Sirius suspected that he was holding back tears.

"She was alright Moony. Peter took her back to the school and then went to go to classes. We thought it would look to suspicious if we all missed class …" James trailed off. Sirius knew that James was glossing things over to help Remus, and while at the moment this seemed like the proper thing to do, he knew it would just hurt more in the long run. But still he kept his mouth shut.

"I want to see her," Remus said quietly.

James and Sirius both exchanged a look and than Sirius reached into his robes, pulling out the Marauders map. Sirius muttered the key words and stared at the map for a moment before handing it to Remus. He frowned.

Remus stood once more, staring at the map intently, after a moment in which Sirius assumed he had found Adriana's name he looked up, giving a dark look to his friends and than left.

They stood in a charged silence which was only broken when James spoke one word with the explosive force of frustration. "Fuck."

* * *

After talking for an hour, Sirius and James parted ways. Sirius trekked up to the dormitory so that he could change and rest, hoping desperately that the wound would stop burning. James had left for the kitchens, hungry and confused.

It was when Sirius was changing his shirt that he heard a knock on his door. He stared for a second, wondering who it could possibly be – James, Remus, and Peter all lived in the room and never knocked – when the door was slowly opened, he was a little afraid. But there, standing in the doorway, staring at him with a sheepish expression on her face was Circe. His heart beat faster, hoping that she didn't know any of what had happened the night before.

He watched her as she walked into the room, closing the door behind her. "Sirius?" She said after stopping when she stood right in front of him. She leaned forward and gave him a hug and he winced as she touched his wound with her arm.

At his wince she looked up at him, confused and hurt. "What is it?" She asked, and he feared that she thought he was mad with her so he leaned over and gave her a kiss rather than answer. She smiled at him but it did not reach her eyes, she knew that something was wrong.

"What are you doing in here Bloom?" He said in his most serious voice, hoping to distract her.

Circe smiled up at him suggestively and stepped closer to him, "I've been waiting for you downstairs … but since you hadn't shown up yet I thought I would come and see if you were in here. You haven't been to class." But behind the teasing tone he sensed something more. It was in her eyes, a disquiet that unnerved him. _She knew something._

Trying desperately to act normal and ignore the pain, he raised an eyebrow as she leant up and kissed him, tugging on his bottom lip as she moved away. He growled at her and she wrapped her arms around his waist, going in to kiss him again. But even though she held him loosely her grip was too tight and it hurt his side. He grimaced and pulled away, clutching where Remus' claws had torn him the night before. He thought he might collapse from the pain of it.

"What is it? Are you ok?" Circe asked, afraid that he was going to reject her.

"It's nothing," he said, but the pain was evident in his voice. He couldn't let her see what had happened.

"Like hell," she muttered, moving so that she was in front of him and reaching to lift his shirt. He pulled away and she scowled at him. "If it's nothing than why won't you let me see? What? Did you fall off your broom or something? It's nothing to be ashamed of."

Sirius had no idea what to say next. He couldn't let her see what had happened to him because than she would ask questions and he didn't want to have to lie to her. But if it came down to it, he would have to because it wasn't his secret to tell. "Let's go downstairs and-" he tried to change the subject but she cut him off when she reached up and pulled his shirt up.

When Circe saw the five long scratches that reached from right over his heart down to his belly button she went white as a ghost. She stood still, clutching his shirt so that the gash was visible and she just stared at it, eyes wide.

He jerked away so that she lost her grip and went to go sit on his bed. He did not look at her but stared at the floor in front of him.

After a silence that stretched a mile she finally spoke. "Do you need to see Madam Pomfrey?" Her words were barely above a whisper.

"No," He said with a wry laugh. All that would accomplish was getting the Marauders in a lot of trouble.

Another silence took over and Sirius fidgeted uneasily under her gaze. He finally looked up at her, gaining eye contact. She had not moved. "What happened?"

He didn't answer, couldn't answer. All he did was shake his head. He didn't want to have to lie to her …

"Was it a prank? I mean … did you guys try and do something and have it not work? Is that why none of you were in your beds last night?" He started; surprised that she knew he wasn't in here last night. She walked over and knelt in front of him.

"How did you know we weren't-?"

"I had another nightmare and came in to see you but the room was empty." She stated and his gut twisted painfully. She had needed him but he hadn't been there. And now he was going to have to lie to her.

"Oh," was all he could manage to say.

"You were attacked." It wasn't a question, she tried to catch his eye again but he refused to look at her. "Adriana was attacked too. In the Dark Forest last night. Were you with her?" He wondered how she knew about that, but realized now was not the time to question.

"I was attacked" he whispered lamely, only answering the first question and wishing he could be anywhere but right there at that moment.

"By what?" Sirius kept his mouth shut, knowing that she was going to be mad at him for not telling her, but Remus and he had been friends for years and he couldn't betray his trust. "Were you in the Dark Forest? Was it the same _thing_ that attacked you too?" She persisted, her tone tinged with worry and a bit of frustration.

He finally looked her in the eye and without speaking told her that he was. Finally, "Look, I told Prongs I would meet him downstairs so I-"

"I don't believe this!" Circe stood up and walked towards the window. "You're really not going to tell me what happened?"

He wanted to go to here then and tell her everything. About how he was an Animagus and how he had been so scared last night that he or Adriana would die. And how every full moon they would go out. He wanted to tell her about how sorry he was that one of his best friends would never have a normal life.

But he couldn't tell her any of that.

"I'm sorry," he said, feeling his heart twist so painfully it almost brought tears to his eyes. He didn't want her to be mad at him and he hoped that she believed his apology and understood why he couldn't trust her in this matter.

Circe turned and looked at him, tears running down her cheek and breaking his heart. "If you're sorry than why can't you tell me?"

"I wish I could." He said and she shut her eyes, closing him out. He hesitated for a second but then walked towards her. When he reached her he wrapped his arms around her and brought her close to him, holding her against his side that wasn't hurt. He kissed her hair and whispered, "It's not my secret to tell." He felt that he at least had to explain that to her.

She opened her eyes and looked up at him; he wiped the tears from her cheek. "Ri wouldn't tell me what happened either …"

All he could do was nod a little, hoping for Remus' sake that she never would.

**A/N: **Sorry, sorry sorry! I can't believe it has been so long since I last updated and I am really sorry that it has taken this long. Between work, school, friends, and grad stuff I have been run off my feet busy. I promise that this story will be done before the summer and am really sorry that it has taken this long (I just hate it when authors have long pauses between chapter uploads, and now I've become one of _those_ people. UGH.) Sorry once again, but I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It is kind of repetive if you follow "Broken", but there will be some new stuff soon! I promise!


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